The book that inspired me

gives you business lessons in a place where you would least expect to learn anything about work "" the baseball field. The author, Michael Lewis, unveils the quest for knowledge that drives a baseball coach to discover value in ruins.

Moneyball is a book about Oakland "" one of the poorest teams in major league baseball and their coach, Billy Beane. Since baseball players undergo a draft process, where the best players are picked by the richest teams, logic governs that weak teams stand no chance of competing.

Lewis observes that the truth is different, and some of the poorest teams still do well "" Oakland being one of them. This apparent anomaly sets Lewis on a search for "baseball truth", which, interestingly, he finds in numbers.

Lewis explores the secret of success by looking at all the logical places and shows how the real source might just be a cache of numbers.

The book emphasises on the importance of data-oriented rigour. It illustrates that even in highly visible areas such as sports, real value can remain hidden for years.

Alok Mittal, executive director, Canaan

Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game
Author: Michael Lewis
Publisher: W W Norton & Co
ISBN: 0393324818