Tortured Sole

Shoaib Akhtar is undoubtedly one of the great bowling talents to have graced the cricket pitch.

Shoaib Akhtar is undoubtedly one of the great bowling talents to have graced the cricket pitch. He is the record holder of the fastest delivery ever,at 161.3 kmph. He has struck terror in the hearts of many batsmen and has over 400 international wickets and numerous match-winning spells in his on-again,off-again career. One has often got the feeling that off-pitch controversies have curtailed the career of someone who could have been one of the greatest fast bowlers of his generation. Controversy,unfortunately,has always dogged him. And his latest salvo may be the most damaging yet.

Controversially Yours,Akhtars autobiography,struggles to ignite the readers interest,and the confusion gets exacerbated because the book appears to be part-fiction,part-truth,sprinkled with fantasy and delusion. It seems to be inspired by the works of three contrasting authors,and the attempt to create a hybrid wherein Gregory David Roberts meets James Frey,with a healthy dose of Andre Agassi,crash-lands.

Its the story of the boy from Rawalpindi whose attempts at greatness were always thwarted by those who misunderstood him or were envious of his destined greatness. Akhtar is here a man who feels he deserved more than he got. But he overdoes it. Even the sequence of events in the chapters Trial by fire and A star is born collapses in space and time,and he appears to have completed his initial education,and managed to go from being a nobody to a superhero in a short two-year span,from 1994 to 1996. It is here that he becomes the misunderstood and tormented average Joe who attains superpowers due to his feats on the cricket pitch. He also reveals his singular obsession with the 100 mph ball.

There are some good moments,but most are lost either in translation or in the world-against-me message that spews forth throughout the 271 pages. Like most super talents,his journey has been fraught with insecurity and riddled with mood swings. Unfortunately in an implosive environment as the PCB was during Akhtars career,he never really did get the firm and disciplined mentoring that he desperately needed,growing up as an international star.

This book is his attempt to be understood,but what it has probably done is terminate his future career in cricket,given the extent of mud-slinging he has done here.