Shikhar Dhawan’s memoir “The One: Cricket, My Life and More” arrives as a refreshingly candid addition to the sports autobiography genre. Unlike many cricket memoirs that tend to sanitize the player’s journey, Dhawan’s narrative embraces vulnerability with the same fearlessness he displayed while facing 150 kmph bouncers. This is not just another celebrity tell-all; it’s a deeply introspective examination of how cricket shaped a man, and how a man learned to navigate the complexities of life both on and off the field.
Narrative Structure: A Well-Paced Journey Through Time
Dhawan structures his memoir chronologically, beginning with his mischievous childhood in Delhi’s Vikaspuri colony and progressing through his rise to international stardom. The pacing feels natural, with each chapter building upon the previous one while maintaining its own distinct flavor. The author’s decision to interweave personal struggles with professional milestones creates a compelling narrative that reads more like a novel than a traditional sports biography.
What sets this memoir apart is Dhawan’s willingness to dedicate equal weight to his failures and controversies as he does to his triumphs. The chapters dealing with his relationships with foreign women, his struggles with form, and his eventual divorce are handled with remarkable honesty. This balanced approach prevents the book from becoming a self-congratulatory exercise and instead presents a complete picture of a complex individual.
The Delhi Boy: Childhood and Early Cricket
The opening chapters paint a vivid picture of Dhawan’s formative years in Delhi, where his reputation as the colony’s “menace” was established early. His recollection of blowing up mailboxes with Diwali firecrackers and his various childhood escapades reveal the fearless streak that would later serve him well on cricket fields around the world. These anecdotes, while entertaining, also serve a deeper purpose in establishing the foundation of his personality.
Dhawan’s introduction to cricket through the legendary Sonnet Cricket Club and his relationship with coach Tarak Sinha provides valuable insights into Delhi’s cricket ecosystem. His detailed description of traveling alone on Delhi’s blueline buses to reach practice sessions offers a glimpse into the dedication required even at the grassroots level. These chapters succeed in humanizing a cricket star, showing how ordinary circumstances can forge extraordinary determination.
The Vulnerable Champion: Personal Struggles and Growth
Perhaps the most compelling aspect of “The One” is Shikhar Dhawan’s unflinching examination of his personal life. His relationships with Aldona, the Polish woman, and later Ellen, the British woman, are narrated with remarkable honesty. Rather than portraying himself as a victim of circumstances, Dhawan acknowledges his own role in these failed relationships and the impact they had on his cricket career.
The chapter dealing with his marriage to Aesha Mukerji and their subsequent divorce is particularly powerful. Dhawan doesn’t shy away from discussing the challenges of a long-distance marriage, his own insecurities, and the painful separation from his son Zoraver. His description of seeing his son for only a few hours during park visits is heartbreaking and reveals the human cost of pursuing excellence in professional sports.
Cricket Philosophy: The Mental Game
Dhawan’s insights into the mental aspects of cricket are among the book’s strongest elements. His discussion of visualization, journaling, and the law of attraction provides a fascinating glimpse into the modern cricketer’s psychological preparation. The influence of “The Secret” by Rhonda Byrne on his career is explored in detail, showing how spiritual practices can complement physical training.
His analysis of different formats and the evolution of T20 cricket offers valuable perspective on how the game has changed during his career. The chapters dealing with the IPL’s early years provide historical context about cricket’s commercialization, while his experiences with different coaches offer insights into various leadership styles in professional sports.
Writing Style: Conversational Yet Profound
Dhawan’s narrative voice is conversational and engaging, maintaining the same easy-going personality that made him popular among teammates and fans. The writing occasionally feels uneven, with some chapters flowing more smoothly than others, but this actually adds to the authenticity of the narrative. The author’s tendency to digress into philosophical observations about life and spirituality might not appeal to readers seeking purely cricket-focused content, but it provides depth to his character portrayal.
The inclusion of specific details about matches, partnerships, and cricketing techniques will satisfy hardcore cricket fans, while the personal anecdotes and life lessons make the book accessible to general readers. Dhawan’s ability to find humor in difficult situations, evident throughout the memoir, prevents the narrative from becoming overly serious despite dealing with heavy topics.
International Cricket: The Pressure Cooker
The sections dealing with Dhawan’s international career provide valuable insights into the pressure-cooker environment of Indian cricket. His description of debut nerves, the weight of expectations, and the constant scrutiny from media and fans illuminates the mental challenges faced by international cricketers. The chapter about his record-breaking performance in the 2013 Champions Trophy captures the euphoria of peak performance while acknowledging the role of luck and timing in sporting success.
His candid discussion of being dropped from various formats and his eventual acceptance of retirement offers a mature perspective on the inevitable decline that all athletes face. The way he handles his exclusion from the 2023 World Cup squad demonstrates personal growth and the wisdom that comes with age and experience.
Areas for Improvement
While “The One” by Shikhar Dhawan succeeds in many areas, it has some shortcomings. The spiritual and philosophical sections, while providing insight into Dhawan’s mindset, occasionally feel disconnected from the cricket narrative. Some readers might find the detailed descriptions of his meditation practices and spiritual awakening repetitive or preachy.
The book could have benefited from more analysis of specific cricket techniques and strategies. While Dhawan discusses his approach to different bowlers and conditions, technical cricket enthusiasts might crave more detailed breakdowns of his batting methodology. Additionally, some chapters feel rushed, particularly those dealing with his later international career, which could have been explored in greater depth.
Legacy and Life Lessons
The final chapters focusing on Dhawan’s transition to life after cricket and his business ventures with Da One Group provide a blueprint for athletes preparing for retirement. His emphasis on giving back to society through sports education and his honest assessment of the challenges of transitioning from professional sports offer valuable insights for current and former athletes.
Recommendation and Comparison
“The One” by Shikhar Dhawan stands alongside other excellent cricket memoirs like Rahul Dravid’s “The Nice Guy Who Finished First” and Sourav Ganguly’s “A Century Is Not Enough” as essential reading for cricket fans. However, Dhawan’s willingness to expose his vulnerabilities sets it apart from more guarded autobiographies by his contemporaries.
Similar Books Worth Reading:
- “The Test of My Life” by Yuvraj Singh
- “Believe” by Suresh Raina
- “Straight from the Heart” by Kapil Dev
- “Playing It My Way” by Sachin Tendulkar
Final Verdict
“The One: Cricket, My Life and More” by Shikhar Dhawan succeeds as both a cricket memoir and a coming-of-age story about finding peace with oneself. Dhawan’s honesty about his mistakes, his growth as a person, and his acceptance of life’s impermanence make this more than just another sports autobiography. While it may not offer the technical cricket insights of some other memoirs, it provides something equally valuable: a genuine human story about resilience, acceptance, and the courage to be vulnerable.
The book will particularly resonate with readers who appreciate authenticity over polish, and those interested in the psychological aspects of professional sports. Despite its occasional flaws, “The One” establishes Shikhar Dhawan as not just a successful cricketer, but as a thoughtful individual who has learned to find meaning beyond the boundary ropes.
