5 cricketers who released a biography soon after retirement ft. Sachin Tendulkar

Cricketers are first and foremost primarily athletes, but a handful of them are quite the storytellers as well, a side which comes to light through their eventual biography. The bridge between an average person's life and a cricketer's life, particularly a well-renowned one, is something that is shrouded with a veil.

While the emergence of social media has resulted in the barrier being translucent from opaque, but it is still far from being transparent. Biographies give one insight into life as a cricketer, the highs and lows, the perils and perks, and the true sense of how the sport is run, among other things as well.

Legendary England bowler Stuart Broad announced his retirement from cricket after the 2023 Ashes on home soil. The pacer is now all set to launch his biography on November 9.

As a player who always had something to say in all circumstances, the book is expected to be a non-stop read as a career stretching to almost two decades will be encompassed in pages.

On that note, let us take a look at five such cricketers who released a biography soon after retirement.

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#1 Shoaib Akhtar

The Pakistan pacer is arguably one of the most controversial figures in the sport's history. Shoaib Akhtar, being ever so subtle, named his biography 'Controversially Yours'. The book was released on September 16, 2011, only a matter of months after his final appearance for Pakistan, which came at the 2011 ODI World Cup.

His exit from the sport came on the back of injuries as well as a strained relationship with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). His omission from the 2011 World Cup semi-final proved to be the final straw, and he decided to retire after the tournament.

In his typical outspoken nature, he did not shy away from speaking his mind through the book. The book encloses riveting chapters about his rivalry with legendary batters and also his rifts with teammates and the management.

Akhtar also sheds it all by recounting his harrowing injury issues and multiple setbacks.

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#2 Sachin Tendulkar

The legendary Indian batter ended his illustrious career spanning over two decades in 2013. He had a fitting farewell at his home ground in the form of a Test match against the West Indies.

Sachin Tendulkar summarised his journey over the two decades and a lot more in his biography titled 'Playing It My Way', which was released on November 6, 2014. The book features his early venture into international cricket, his struggles with captaincy, playing through tough times and injury, and a whole lot more.

Playing it my way made it into the Limca Book of World Records in 2016 for breaking the numbers for the best-selling adult hardback across both fiction and non-fiction categories.

Sachin had a habit of setting new standards with the bat during his playing days, he set the same standard for his literature as well.

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#3 Sir Alastair Cook

The former England captain left the game as one of the finest opening batters to have ever taken the crease. He ended his career with the home Test series against India.

Sir Alastair Cook scored a memorable ton in his final Test appearance at The Oval from September 7 to 11 and proceeded to release his biography on October 29, 2019.

The book served as a portal for the readers to get to know Cook, who was not particularly renowned to express his emotions on the field.

He reflected on the stress and the challenges that come with playing the sport at the highest level as well.

#4 Michael Clarke

The former Australia captain retired from cricket after leading the team to a record fifth ODI World Cup title in 2015, that too on home soil. After embracing arguably one of the greatest and most fitting farewells in history, Michael Clarke released his biography titled 'My Story' in 2016.

Like several Australian players of his generation, Clarke's career was not without incidents or controversies.

Right from his eventful debut in India and being part of the dominant Australian outfit under Ricky Ponting and eventually handling the transition as the leader himself, Clarke spoke about each of the aforementioned aspects in detail among several other things, including his personal life.

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#5 Ricky Ponting

One of the greatest captains of all time, Ricky Ponting had an illustrious career that came to an end in 2013. He played his last international game in 2012 but continued with franchise cricket for a little while longer.

One of the most charismatic and outspoken figures in Australian cricket, Ponting released his biography titled, ' At the Close of Play', on October 21, 2013.

In a gripping fashion, he shed details about his journey as a child in Tasmania to a cricketing great.