It was always exciting watching Shikhar Dhawan bat and field and his flamboyance made him a very enticing person to watch. I was therefore very pleased to read his autography, The One.

I have read many autobiographies of Indian cricketers and have always been impressed and touched by the respect with which they often bestow on family, friends and fellow cricketers. Shikhar's book is very much in that category - maybe even more so - and I found it nice reading about so many people referred to as Sir, bhai etc after their names.

Shikhar enjoyed a good career in all formats of the game for India, Delhi and IPL sides but his book is, to me, slightly different in that the content does not concentrate as much on his achievements and matches where he did well. It is more about how he ran his life and, to me, came over almost as a self-help guide, a guide on how international cricketers run their lives: how to cope with being an Indian cricketer and the limelight associated with being one such; his relationship with everyone with whom he came in touch; the media; captaincy and now business activities.

I remember reading many years ago that Shikhar and Aakash Chopra did not get on but were still opening partners for Delhi. I was pleased to read in The One that this incident is now in the past and that they get on once again.

Shikhar writes generously about people and accepts that, as a human being, he has not always got everything right. I am sure that we have all read books in which a good deal of criticism is aired within the pages and it is therefore pleasant to read nice words. The One is a feel-good book.

He has taken mindfulness seriously and, in the era where mental health is regularly mentioned, his comments seem well worth taking on board and how he coped with failure. His comments make sense.

Shikhar's business venture with the Da One Group - a play on words with his surname - is aimed at helping people and is therefore a very honourable scheme. I had to chuckle at his comment that "free periods" are now called the Da One Sports Hour: Shikhar is a good deal younger than me but this rekindled memories of my schooldays when it was frequently impressed upon me that such lessons were "private study periods"...

On another personal note, I see that I stay in the same area as Shikhar grew up in in Delhi whenever I visit the city. Knowing this area fairly well made for interesting reading for me.

In conclusion, The One is a nice book and was most interesting to read. I wish Shikhar, his co-authors, Chandresh Narayanan and Namita Kala, and HarperCollins every success with it.