In the book How Sachin Destroyed My Life, Vikram Sathaye, MTV executive-turned-stand-up comedianturned- TV humourist rattles off anecdote after anecdote from his career which fatefully, got intertwined with cricket. Odd as it may look besides other books on the legendary cricketer, this one will stand on its own for its unabashed irreverence. Sathaye is clearly one of the best cricket humourists around. It is no surprise that his book will make you laugh and also admire the man’s wit and his sense of humour. A perfect fan-boy book, it has some great anecdotes and life lessons as take-home gifts.
The book chronicles how Sathaye accidentally became a stand-up comedian and cricket humourist and got to live the ultimate fan-boy dream of having an all access pass to the world of Indian cricket, and being up close with the team for more than a decade. The book documents his incredible journey of Indian cricket as he takes us inside dressing rooms, hotels and the inner circles of leading cricketers.
With a foreword by Sachin Tendulkar, this book is laced with crackling humour and brimming with interesting anecdotes, insights, quotes and candid photographs, ranging from cricketing legends such as Sachin Tendulkar, Rahul Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, among others. This book promises to reveal many more inside secrets.
What makes the book tick is the simple language, the ease with which the stories are told and the author’s clear thought process as to why he has decided to pen his cricketing journey. Sathaye is not restricted to Indian cricketers alone but also covers cricket journalists, senior and junior commentators and international cricketers. After having covered cricket for over a decade, albeit from a different standpoint, Sathaye’s take on the game comes across as refreshing and innovative.
His generalisations, especially about women, however, don’t work for me. Sathaye assumes that girlfriends and wives aren’t interested in cricket and, at one point, even says “every mother wants her son to become a cricketer so that an IPL contract can not only get them out of their modest lifestyle but also make her a kitty party queen.” Unfair.