Book Review: Sania's 'Ace Against Odds' is a delight to read

First things first. The cover of Sania Mirza's autobiography `Ace Against Odds' is fabulous. Incredibly classy. But then don't judge a book by its cover, because the book is even better. 

The only drawback, if I may call it, is the chronological approach which gets a bit tiring in parts. While the writing team has made an attempt to bring out Sania the person through her game, a non-linear approach could have worked better than a tennis tournament to tennis tournament narrative.

But let that not bother you because Martina Hingis serves up an ace with her foreword, setting up the reader for an engrossing read. 

In just two and a half pages, the champion player articulates about her partnership with Sania who she calls `a friend for life'. She explains clinically why she chose Sania, whose tennis Hingis calls "magical, almost mystical". I wonder why she did not use the tag 'Santina' that is often used for the pair, even as she says, the match `"seems to have been made in heaven". 

The chapters about a young Sania, how she took to tennis, the sacrifices made by her parents make for riveting reading. 

The struggles of the young Mirzas, in trying to save money to be able to afford several tennis tournaments are important learning for any parent who aspires to see his or her child take to tennis or any other sport. 

More often than not, the success or failure of the child depends to a large extent on the parents' tenacity. Are they willing to walk the extra mile or not? 

In the case of Imran and Nasima Mirza, they seem to have driven the extra mile in their 'dieselized' Maruti 1000, which Sania describes in the book as moments of family bonding as the journeys sometimes extended even to 30 hours. 

Or standing in the queue to get concessional fares for rail tickets. Or taking a huge risk in violence-torn Bengal or getting stuck in a train. 

But after every dusk comes dawn. And that is pretty much the pattern of the autobiography. The joy with which Sania's first coach Srikkanth asks Sania's father to come and watch his daughter play is described beautifully. "You have to come, sir! She has tremendous ball sense and timing. You cannot teach that. It's pure talent.'' 

Of all the coaches, and Sania has trained under several, I think one has to doff one's hat to this former national player who like an expert, could spot a champion in a six-year-old. A pity he is no more to see his ward conquer the world.

That Sania credits a lot of her success to her forehand comes through at many places in the book. Like this. "The technical experts ... concluded that it was my grip along with the unique flick of my wrist that gave me the phenomenal power on my forehand.''

Sania's attitude on court is something that has been spoken and written about for the last two decades.

In the book, she credits early advice in life from her father for it. "My father firmly believed that at the very top, you do not win by just waiting for others to commit mistakes. He inculcated the `take the bull by the horns' approach in me.'' 

It is similar to the other champion from Hyderabad, badminton player Saina Nehwal, who has the 'maar doongi' attitude that conveys her hunger to vanquish her opponent every single time. 

The book is a good read for aspiring tennis players, for them to know the path Sania and her family travelled. 

It was not an easy life and still isn't, despite the aura of glamour around her. 

The controversies in her life - be it the Mecca Masjid 'shooting' incident, the flag controversy, the London Olympics faceoff or her marriage with Shoaib Malik - all figure in the book though they are dealt with rather simplistically. They aren't analysed in greater detail, with the benefit of hindsight. 

Would Sania have done something different, if the same situation arose now? The book, unfortunately, is only a recounting of the Sania version of many such events. 

In most of the cases, the 'TRP hungry media' is blamed as the villain of the piece, with only a few select editors who wrote pieces of praise coming in for special mention. 

Poor 'cub reporters' come in for criticism for shoving their mikes. Wish the writers knew that it is these top editors who from the newsroom order the reporters to do precisely that. 

They decide the spin of the news, not the hapless cub reporters, who only draw the flak. 

The part where Sania describes her interactions with Bob Brett and Tony Roche are among the best in the book because they give you an insight into what went into making her the champion she is. 

The part where she and her dad, who is also now her coach, plotted to defeat Martina Hingis is a lovely bit of story telling. As a reader, I wish there was more of that in the book. 

The humour in the book is well-related, with the one involving 32-year-old Mahesh Bhupathi where he was not let into a casino because the guards thought he was underage, among the best of the lot. 

There would be many who would perhaps buy this book, expecting to read juicy details of Sania's marriage to Malik. Regarding this, Sania does not offer anything more than what is already in the public domain. 

But one line struck me the most in that part of the book. "As athletes, you forget such boundaries."

This is concerning the jibes that Sania chose someone as her life partner on the other side of the Wagah. That one line gives you a peek into the person's mindset and way of thinking. 

The pride that Sania feels at what she has achieved at the age of 29 comes across in the book quite clearly. 

She chooses former US President George Bush's line to put it more emphatically. On his visit to Delhi, after a stopover in Hyderabad, Bush said : "I was happy to be in the city of Sania Mirza this morning.'' 

What can be a bigger honour?

Which is why the autobiography leaves you feeling good. And as you finish reading the 238th page, you may well say, 'Love-All'.