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Unguarded: My Autobiography
Shortlisted for the 2017 Cross Sports Autobiography of the Year
'F ull of illuminating anecdotes, piercing insights and unsparing self-analysis from the former England batsman' The Cricketer
Jonathan Trott was England's rock during one of the most successful periods in the team's history - he scored a century on debut to clinch the Ashes in 2009, and cemented his position as their pivotal batsman up to and beyond the team's ascendancy to the number 1 ranked test team in 2011.
Yet shortly after reaching those heights, he started to crumble, and famously left the 2012-13 Ashes tour of Australia suffering from a stress related illness. His story is the story of Team England - it encompasses the life-cycle of a team that started out united by ambition, went on to achieve some of the greatest days in the team's history but then, bodies and minds broken, fell apart amid acrimony.
Having seen all of this from the inside, Jonathan's autobiography takes readers to the heart of the England dressing room, and to the heart of what it is to be a professional sportsman. Not only does it provide a unique perspective on a remarkably successful period in English cricket and its subsequent reversal, it also offers a fascinating insight into the rewards and risks faced as a sportsman carrying the hope and expectation of a team and a nation. And it's a salutary tale of the dangers pressure can bring in any walk of life, and the perils of piling unrealistic expecations on yourself.
'F ull of illuminating anecdotes, piercing insights and unsparing self-analysis from the former England batsman' The Cricketer
Jonathan Trott was England's rock during one of the most successful periods in the team's history - he scored a century on debut to clinch the Ashes in 2009, and cemented his position as their pivotal batsman up to and beyond the team's ascendancy to the number 1 ranked test team in 2011.
Yet shortly after reaching those heights, he started to crumble, and famously left the 2012-13 Ashes tour of Australia suffering from a stress related illness. His story is the story of Team England - it encompasses the life-cycle of a team that started out united by ambition, went on to achieve some of the greatest days in the team's history but then, bodies and minds broken, fell apart amid acrimony.
Having seen all of this from the inside, Jonathan's autobiography takes readers to the heart of the England dressing room, and to the heart of what it is to be a professional sportsman. Not only does it provide a unique perspective on a remarkably successful period in English cricket and its subsequent reversal, it also offers a fascinating insight into the rewards and risks faced as a sportsman carrying the hope and expectation of a team and a nation. And it's a salutary tale of the dangers pressure can bring in any walk of life, and the perils of piling unrealistic expecations on yourself.
298 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 25, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
March 1, 2018
I enjoyed the inside story to JT’s experiences as being out of the country at the time, I had little insight into what had occurred. I’m glad I have his side of the story and now a much better appreciation of a) his personality and b) his cricketing journey.
It’s just a personal view but I couldn’t see the sense or logic in disrupting the linear - I felt too often asking myself ‘where are we now?’ Also, the book has contributions from several others, to the extent that I started to lose the ability to hear JT’s voice.
I was living in Australia between 2008 and 2013 and in December 2010 was recovering from heart failure. My son was visiting me and my lasting memory of that Christmas was the joy JT brought to us, not least in his 168 not out. That is his legacy to me, most definitely not quitting the Ashes tour. Unless you’ve been a Pom living in Australia through an Ashes tour, you can’t understand the joy an English team can bring. Thanks, JT.
It’s just a personal view but I couldn’t see the sense or logic in disrupting the linear - I felt too often asking myself ‘where are we now?’ Also, the book has contributions from several others, to the extent that I started to lose the ability to hear JT’s voice.
I was living in Australia between 2008 and 2013 and in December 2010 was recovering from heart failure. My son was visiting me and my lasting memory of that Christmas was the joy JT brought to us, not least in his 168 not out. That is his legacy to me, most definitely not quitting the Ashes tour. Unless you’ve been a Pom living in Australia through an Ashes tour, you can’t understand the joy an English team can bring. Thanks, JT.
October 4, 2022
I like George Dobell's writing so thought I would try this book despite a general aversion towards sports autobiographies, as the worst that could happen was that it would be a readable but fairly dull book.
The USP was the background to Trott's exit from the Ashes and later, his test career. He was honest about when he felt he should have spoken up more, and when he felt his coach hadn't made the optimal decision. However, there wasn't really much to say on the issue itself, and it wasn't something that dogged him throughout his career. Presumably deliberately, details on the matches themselves were few and far between. Part of this was Trott's attitude, focusing on each ball as it comes and not so much the bigger picture, but it also meant that aside from dismissals in Brisbane and the West Indies, you were never in the middle with him - there was much more insight into the dressing room than what it is like to be playing international cricket.
I don't feel this is an exaggeration, and there was a caption on the photograph plates about Dale Steyn that had much more detail than there was in the book itself. Contributions from Pietersen, Strauss, Cook, Giles and Flower gave good insights from another perspective, but again, this was more discussion of dressing room attitudes and discussions. It also led to slightly bizarre editorial choices where a contribution from Cook or Strauss would take up a page on a slightly related topic, then the next paragraph as Trott would continue as though there was no interruption, requiring me to look back at what he was writing about. The other aspect to the book was a defense of his place in the one day side despite an unremarkable strike rate - a reasoning that was backed up in a more recent book I've read that stated rule changes have been a major force behind increased scoring rates. It also put a new perspective on arrogance - Trott was accused of being too self-confident and arrogant at Warwickshire and it is slightly strange for a consistent but unspectacular player to have that accusation levelled at them.
Despite those contributions from others and at times fairly candid admissions, the book was still fairly short. Innings lists are boring but a bit more of the cricket itself could have been included, or even discussion of opposition players. Late on he suggests he could be a more analytical media figure rather than a controversial pundit, but he didn't waste those insights in his autobiography. In the end, it was a readable but fairly dull book.
The USP was the background to Trott's exit from the Ashes and later, his test career. He was honest about when he felt he should have spoken up more, and when he felt his coach hadn't made the optimal decision. However, there wasn't really much to say on the issue itself, and it wasn't something that dogged him throughout his career. Presumably deliberately, details on the matches themselves were few and far between. Part of this was Trott's attitude, focusing on each ball as it comes and not so much the bigger picture, but it also meant that aside from dismissals in Brisbane and the West Indies, you were never in the middle with him - there was much more insight into the dressing room than what it is like to be playing international cricket.
I don't feel this is an exaggeration, and there was a caption on the photograph plates about Dale Steyn that had much more detail than there was in the book itself. Contributions from Pietersen, Strauss, Cook, Giles and Flower gave good insights from another perspective, but again, this was more discussion of dressing room attitudes and discussions. It also led to slightly bizarre editorial choices where a contribution from Cook or Strauss would take up a page on a slightly related topic, then the next paragraph as Trott would continue as though there was no interruption, requiring me to look back at what he was writing about. The other aspect to the book was a defense of his place in the one day side despite an unremarkable strike rate - a reasoning that was backed up in a more recent book I've read that stated rule changes have been a major force behind increased scoring rates. It also put a new perspective on arrogance - Trott was accused of being too self-confident and arrogant at Warwickshire and it is slightly strange for a consistent but unspectacular player to have that accusation levelled at them.
Despite those contributions from others and at times fairly candid admissions, the book was still fairly short. Innings lists are boring but a bit more of the cricket itself could have been included, or even discussion of opposition players. Late on he suggests he could be a more analytical media figure rather than a controversial pundit, but he didn't waste those insights in his autobiography. In the end, it was a readable but fairly dull book.
July 27, 2017
Had finished reading the book few weeks back, so it will be tough to recollect all the intricacies here. Was impressed most by a) Trott's non-linear approach of story telling and, b) his shrugging off all the vanity in talking about the period when he was his most vulnerable (self). (Tour to Australia - Ashes Series 2013). Trott really takes the batting stance unguarded as he dedicates a major portion of the book to this phase rather than his glory days in an honest and heartfelt narration.
October 25, 2019
A very honest and insightful read about the issues that JT experienced.
Felt it was a bit more honest and had more to offer than the average sporting bio. My only slight disappointment was I felt he was, ironically, quite guarded about the culture in the England dressing room and held back from criticising anyone in it. However that's only a minor issue and I left the book with a greater understanding of the condition Trott suffered.
Felt it was a bit more honest and had more to offer than the average sporting bio. My only slight disappointment was I felt he was, ironically, quite guarded about the culture in the England dressing room and held back from criticising anyone in it. However that's only a minor issue and I left the book with a greater understanding of the condition Trott suffered.
September 28, 2020
I really liked the way this was set out and the contribution from the other players. Cricket comes off as one of the toughest sports mentally
December 5, 2020
3.75. Really enjoyed this. Frank, disarmingly direct, probably all you'd want from a sporting autobiography, with honest insight into when it all goes wrong.
April 11, 2021
Fascinating for any cricket fan and eye opening to find out the truth behind the struggles of Trott.
August 3, 2024
It's a good read from a great cricketer who has not always had it easy
November 4, 2019
While some autobiographies constitute an exercise in monotonous trumpeting of the self, there are some that traverse the path of introspection. However rare are the ones that lend a clear perspective regarding life itself. Jonathan Trott and George Dobell have successfully written a book, which, although primarily revolves around the game of cricket, transcends the sporting arena, to touch a raw and uncompromising nerve. The confluence of sport and mental pressure is a subject that has unfortunately and undeservedly not received the coverage and visibility that it deserves. The assiduousness of Marcus Trescothik's moving autobiography being an outstanding exception. Trott and Dobell however have taken a huge step in the right direction with "Unguarded".
For a substantial period of time, Jonathan Trott was the undisputed spine of the English batting line up, shoring responsibilities galore. He blunted many a fierce bowling attack, standing firm like a Colossus at the batting crease. Trott was a veritable mendicant unaffected by either cause or consequence and unmoved by neither circumstance nor calamity. He was the perfect ascetic amongst batsmen, whose concentration remained firmly cloistered between the 22 yards that was his home and his possessed turf. When this formidable monk however lost his preternatural Mojo in the year 2013 in an Ashes series Down Under, things turned ugly. Serene calmness metamorphosed into roiling confusion and the art of batting was but an architecture collapsing without reason. Within two years Jonathan Trott's international career was done and dusted. What was it that led to this extraordinary tumble from a pinnacle that was scaled with patience, purpose and perseverance?
Trott and Dobell tackle the reasons underlying the downfall of Jonathan Trott as a batsman head on without mincing words or professing a litany of excuses. In the process, they demonstrate with clarity and lucidity the fact that while cricket or any other chosen career may be for a livelihood, it need not be for life. Trott’s debilitating state of mind and progressive deterioration for the love of the game reveals more than what meets the eye. It also serves as a clarion call for all those involved in the game, players, management and the pundits alike to sit up and take note of an indispensable facet which although seeming extraneous to the game is a integral part of the very heart of the sport. The authors elucidate the pompous and impetuous manner in which the words “mental make-up” is used to describe alternatively the success and failure of a cricketer instead of trying to understand the emotional state of mind of the man behind a helmet or a player rushing into the popping crease with a cherry. The nonexistence of a support infrastructure that fails to initially recognize player anxiety and consequently to treat the same with care and caution has led to the pristine game of cricket treading dangerous grounds.
The courage displayed by Jonathan Trott in bringing his sordid story to the whole world is to put it mildly, exemplary. While he might not have achieved the heights which the whole cricketing world expected him to achieve as a world renowned Number 3, he has certainly distinguished himself from being a mere cricketer to an extraordinary human being. In this he has succeeded beyond all imaginable measures. On a personal note, “Unguarded” landed in my hands only a couple of days after I met with a horrific automobile accident. The taxi by which I was travelling with a couple of colleagues (and driven by a particularly reckless driver) crashed head on into an oncoming vehicle leaving me with a shattered femur, dislocation and compound fractures of the hip. Six hours of emergency surgery later, I lay in bed with aching limbs and creaking bones or rather broken ones. Only a book could have diverted the focus off the pain and it was Trott’s biography that I resorted to. Where I was seeking relief, I got succor and where I was seeking sympathy (involuntarily) I received a morale boosting dose of strength. More than everything else I clearly realized the full import of the word – perspective.
For this I thank Jonathan Trott and George Dobell!
For a substantial period of time, Jonathan Trott was the undisputed spine of the English batting line up, shoring responsibilities galore. He blunted many a fierce bowling attack, standing firm like a Colossus at the batting crease. Trott was a veritable mendicant unaffected by either cause or consequence and unmoved by neither circumstance nor calamity. He was the perfect ascetic amongst batsmen, whose concentration remained firmly cloistered between the 22 yards that was his home and his possessed turf. When this formidable monk however lost his preternatural Mojo in the year 2013 in an Ashes series Down Under, things turned ugly. Serene calmness metamorphosed into roiling confusion and the art of batting was but an architecture collapsing without reason. Within two years Jonathan Trott's international career was done and dusted. What was it that led to this extraordinary tumble from a pinnacle that was scaled with patience, purpose and perseverance?
Trott and Dobell tackle the reasons underlying the downfall of Jonathan Trott as a batsman head on without mincing words or professing a litany of excuses. In the process, they demonstrate with clarity and lucidity the fact that while cricket or any other chosen career may be for a livelihood, it need not be for life. Trott’s debilitating state of mind and progressive deterioration for the love of the game reveals more than what meets the eye. It also serves as a clarion call for all those involved in the game, players, management and the pundits alike to sit up and take note of an indispensable facet which although seeming extraneous to the game is a integral part of the very heart of the sport. The authors elucidate the pompous and impetuous manner in which the words “mental make-up” is used to describe alternatively the success and failure of a cricketer instead of trying to understand the emotional state of mind of the man behind a helmet or a player rushing into the popping crease with a cherry. The nonexistence of a support infrastructure that fails to initially recognize player anxiety and consequently to treat the same with care and caution has led to the pristine game of cricket treading dangerous grounds.
The courage displayed by Jonathan Trott in bringing his sordid story to the whole world is to put it mildly, exemplary. While he might not have achieved the heights which the whole cricketing world expected him to achieve as a world renowned Number 3, he has certainly distinguished himself from being a mere cricketer to an extraordinary human being. In this he has succeeded beyond all imaginable measures. On a personal note, “Unguarded” landed in my hands only a couple of days after I met with a horrific automobile accident. The taxi by which I was travelling with a couple of colleagues (and driven by a particularly reckless driver) crashed head on into an oncoming vehicle leaving me with a shattered femur, dislocation and compound fractures of the hip. Six hours of emergency surgery later, I lay in bed with aching limbs and creaking bones or rather broken ones. Only a book could have diverted the focus off the pain and it was Trott’s biography that I resorted to. Where I was seeking relief, I got succor and where I was seeking sympathy (involuntarily) I received a morale boosting dose of strength. More than everything else I clearly realized the full import of the word – perspective.
For this I thank Jonathan Trott and George Dobell!
January 18, 2017
"The game spares no one." Anxiety of performance, of putting pressure on yourself to perform, of not wanting to let the people closest to you down. That little voice in your head that eats away at you. As honest a memoir you'll ever read. When Jonathan Trott went home early from the 2013-14 Australian Ashes tour, the public damnation of him was brutal. Anyone of you who criticised him leaving the tour early, who questioned his courage and commitment to his team mates, please taken the time to read his book.
November 13, 2016
A lovely book really. Trott writes simply and candidly about the psychology of becoming a world class sportsman. Using the testimony of his fellow players, coaches and family to illustrate his story works well. He's no Stephen Fry but there are moments of deadpan humour amongst the anxiety. You bear!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews