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November 14, 2021. The Chase.Target: 183 Runs.
The interval was over. The lights of the Ring of Fire burned with a renewed intensity, piercing the humidity that hung over the Dubai International Stadium like a heavy blanket.
183 Runs. It wasn't 200. It wasn't 240. It was a score that teased you. It whispered that it was chaseable but screamed that one mistake would be fatal.
The Indian openers, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, jogged onto the field. They looked focused, their faces set in grim determination. They knew the history. They knew that in high-pressure chases, the Powerplay defined the game.
New Zealand, the nice guys of world cricket, transformed the moment they crossed the boundary rope. They became a pack of wolves led by the smiling assassin, Kane Williamson.
Trent Boult had the new ball. The left-arm swing merchant.
Over 1.
Ball 1: Boult ran in. The rhythmic pounding of his feet against the turf was the only sound in the stadium as 30,000 people held their breath. He pitched it full, shaping away from KL Rahul. Rahul watched it. He covered his off-stump and shouldered arms. The ball swung late, hissing past the stumps. Dot Ball.
Ball 2: Boult adjusted. A fraction straighter. Rahul pressed forward, defending solidly to mid-off. Dot Ball.
The pressure was instantaneous. In a chase of 183, two dots feel like an over.
Ball 3: Boult sensed the eagerness. He saw Rahul shuffle slightly, looking to feel ball on bat. Boult didn't pitch it up. He banged it in. It was a surprise bouncer—sharp, directed at the left shoulder. Rahul was expecting the swing. He was caught in two minds. He tried to pull, then tried to withdraw. The bat hung in the air like a periscope.
Kiss.
The ball took the top edge. It didn't fly fine. It skewed high into the night sky, drifting towards the vast expanse of deep mid-wicket.
Daryl Mitchell, fielding inside the ring, turned and sprinted. He ran back, eyes locked on the white cherry against the black sky. He covered twenty yards, thirty yards. He dived full length, sliding across the turf. His hands cupped inches from the grass.
He rolled over, holding the ball aloft.
KL Rahul c Mitchell b Boult 0 (3)India: 0/1.
The stadium was plunged into a vacuum of silence from Indian fans.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Disaster! Absolute disaster for India! Three balls in, and they are one down for none! Trent Boult does it again! The surprise bouncer has undone class. Look at that catch from Mitchell! Is this pressure? I ask you, Sunny, is this the pressure of a Final getting to them?"
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "It is a setback, Nasser, certainly. A poor shot selection so early on. But... the King is coming now. Virat Kohli walks out. He loves a chase. He lives for this."
Virat Kohli walked out of the tunnel. The noise returned, a desperate, pleading chant of "Kohli! Kohli!" He looked intense. He marked his guard aggressively, scratching the pitch.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Well, the King is here, but he hasn't had a royal tournament, has he? Not a single fifty. He's been the anchor while others have played the shots. Tonight, he needs to be more than an anchor. He needs to be the engine."
The pitch, which had looked like a highway in the first innings, suddenly changed character. As the ball lost its shine, the surface seemed to grip. It was swinging for the pacers and stopping for the slower balls.
Tim Southee partnered Boult. They bowled test-match lines. Rohit Sharma, usually so free-flowing, was tied down. He couldn't trust the bounce. He pushed, he prodded. Virat Kohli was watchful, respecting the conditions.
End of Powerplay (6 Overs):India: 29/1.
It was India's lowest Powerplay score of the tournament. The Required Run Rate had jumped from 9.15 to nearly 11.
Ian Smith (Comms): "This is suffocating. This is the New Zealand way. They don't blow you away with pace; they strangle you with discipline. 29 for 1? In a chase of 183? India is sleepwalking into a crisis here."
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "They are respecting the conditions, Ian. If they lose another wicket here, the middle order is exposed too early. But you are right, the clock is ticking. Tick, tock."
Overs 7 to 9: Mitchell Santner and Ish Sodhi came on. The spin twins. The ball turned. It gripped. Rohit tried to cut Santner. Missed. Virat tried to drive Sodhi. Inside edge.
The boundaries had dried up. The crowd was restless. Score after 9 Overs: 43/1.Required Rate: 12.72.
Over 10: Ish Sodhi.
Rohit Sharma had seen enough. He was batting slow with less than 100 strike rate. He knew he had to break the shackles.
Ball 10.1: Sodhi tossed it up, a leg-break. Rohit went down on one knee. The slog sweep. He connected. It wasn't out of the middle, but it had enough power to clear the mid-wicket region. FOUR. The crowd roared. Finally.
Ball 10.2: Sodhi was clever. He saw Rohit's intent. He tossed it up again, but he bowled it wider, and much slower. 78 kmph. Rohit's eyes lit up. He saw the flight. He wanted to hit it into the parking lot. He reached out. He swung hard. But he was too early. He dragged the ball from outside off. The bat turned in his hand.
The ball went high, but it didn't have the distance. It soared towards the long-on boundary. Daryl Mitchell, the man who could do no wrong, was patrolling the rope. He settled under it. He didn't have to move much. He took it comfortably, just inside the cushion.
Rohit Sharma c Mitchell b SodhiIndia: 47/2.
The silence returned, heavier this time.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "And that is the big fish! Rohit Sharma goes! He had to go for it, the run rate was strangling them, and Sodhi bought the wicket! This is ODI cricket in a T20 game from India. They are playing so slowly! You cannot chase 183 by blocking and hoping! They are making a World Cup Final look like a Test match!"
Ian Smith (Comms): "New Zealand are all over them like a rash! 47 for 2 at the halfway mark essentially. Who walks out now? Who wants to hold the burning coal?"
The answer came from the dugout.
A figure emerged from the shadows. He wasn't walking; he was jogging. A light, rhythmic jog that spoke of energy, not panic.
Aarav Pathak.
The crowd saw him on the big screen. The roar that erupted was guttural. It was a roar of hope, desperation, and belief.
"AARAV! AARAV!"
I crossed the rope. I adjusted my gloves. I looked at the scoreboard. 47/2. 10.2 Overs.136 runs needed off 58 balls.Required Rate: 14.06.
It was a mountain. A steep, jagged mountain.
I reached the pitch. Virat Kohli walked down to meet me. He looked frustrated. Sweat was dripping from his beard.
"The pitch is stopping," Virat said, breathless. "It's tacky. The ball isn't coming on. You can't hit through the line easily."
I looked at the surface. I saw the dust puffing up slightly.
"Understood, Skip," I said.
I looked at Ish Sodhi. He was a spinner. I unclipped my helmet. "Take it," I said to the 12th man who had run out with a bottle. I handed him the helmet. I asked for my Blue Cap.
The crowd noticed. A ripple of excitement went through the stands. They knew what the Cap meant. It meant the Prince was in his court.
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "Here he is. The man of the tournament. And look at that... the helmet is off! The cap is on! That is a statement of intent against the spinner. He is saying, 'I see the ball, I hit the ball.' He is not afraid."
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Brave. Or foolish? The required rate is 14. He has to go from ball one. Sodhi has his tail up."
I took my stance. I stood tall. I opened my chest. I tapped the bat behind my foot. Tap. Tap.
I looked at Sodhi. He was smiling. I didn't smile back. I stared. The Viv Richards Aura flared up, invisible but heavy. Bowl it.
Sodhi's smile faltered.
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Over 10.3. Dubai International Stadium.Target: 183.India: 47/2.
The crowd was still buzzing from the sight of the Blue Cap. I stood at the crease, my shadow stretching long under the floodlights. Ish Sodhi, buoyed by the wicket of Rohit Sharma, ran in for his third ball to me.
He saw me step out slightly. He panicked. Instead of tossing it up, he fired in a yorker. A spinner bowling a 95kmph yorker. It was unexpected, but my reflexes were already calibrated. I jammed the bat down, wristy and quick. I swatted it along the ground to long-off. 1 Run.
Virat Kohli faced the remaining balls. He looked determined to shift gears. Ball 10.4: Kohli stepped out and whipped Sodhi through mid-wicket for FOUR. He defended the next two. End of Over 10.India: 52/2.Required Rate: 13.1.
Over 11: Mitchell Santner.
Kane Williamson brought on his left-arm orthodox spinner. Santner is known for his accuracy; he doesn't give you anything. He bowls flat, skidding it into the pads.
I walked to the striker's end. I looked at the field. Long-on was back. Deep mid-wicket was back. I needed to disrupt his line.
I didn't take a normal stance. I opened my legs wide. I turned my chest towards the bowler. The Open Stance. I was showing him all three stumps. I was practically facing him like a baseball batter. It was a provocation. Bowl at my stumps. I dare you.
Ball 11.1: Santner saw the stumps exposed. He couldn't resist. He bowled it full and in the slot, aiming for middle. Because my chest was already open, I didn't need to clear my front leg. I was already cleared. I swung through the line. Pure, unadulterated bat speed. I hammered it flat and hard straight back over the bowler's head. It traveled like a bullet. It hit the sightscreen with a deafening thud.
SIX!
Ian Smith (Comms): "Oh, my word! Look at that stance! He's standing there like he's waiting for a bus, and then BANG! That has been dismissed from his presence! He showed him the stumps and said, 'Hit them if you can!' That is arrogance of the highest order!"
Ball 11.2: Santner adjusted. He bowled it flatter, angling it into my pads, cramping me. I pushed it back to him. Dot Ball.
Ball 11.3: He went to a length on middle stump. Not quite a half-volley, not quite short. A nothing ball. I didn't step out. I just leaned back slightly, extended my arms, and used the leverage of the long handle. I lofted it over long-on. It looked like a check-drive, but it carried 85 meters. SIX!
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "Effortless! He just extended his arms like he was picking an apple from a tree! Santner is a clever bowler, but he has no answer to this. Aarav is taking the pitch out of the equation."
Ball 11.4: Santner went around the wicket. He tried the arm ball (drifting in like a googly). I made room, trying to cut. It hurried onto me. It skidded off the deck. It hit my pad before the bat. We scrambled a leg bye to short third man. 1 Run (Leg Bye).
Kohli defended the fifth ball and took a single on the last. 14 runs off the over. The pressure valve released slightly.
Over 12: Ish Sodhi.
Sodhi continued. He was brave. Ball 12.1: Kohli rocked back and pulled a short one for FOUR.
Ball 12.2: Single to deep cover.
I was back on strike. Ball 12.3. Sodhi bowled a length ball, turning into me from outside leg or maybe just drifting in. It was dipping. Most batsmen would play this off the back foot. I didn't wait. I got low. I didn't drop my knee to the ground; I squatted. I swept it on the rise. It wasn't a slog; it was a pickup sweep played before the ball could spin excessively. I connected sweetly. The ball flew over the mid-wicket boundary.
SIX!
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "Looked so easy! How does he do that? He picked the length so early. He didn't even commit to the knee; he just crouched and swatted it. That is phenomenal balance!"
Ball 12.4: Single to long-on. Ball 12.5: Kohli single. Ball 12.6: I kept the strike with a single.
India: 81/2 (12 Overs).Target: 183.102 needed off 48 balls.Required Rate: 12.75.
We were keeping up, but we needed a big over.
Over 13: Adam Milne.
Kane Williamson brought back pace. Adam Milne. Express fast. He thought the short ball or the yorker would work where spin had failed.
Ball 13.1: Milne ran in. 148 kmph. He bowled it full, searching for the swing. I anticipated the length. I didn't look at the ball after impact. I whipped it off my pads. The No-Look Shot. I stared directly at the square leg umpire while the ball sailed over the backward square leg fence.
SIX!
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "He hasn't even looked at it! The audacity! Adam Milne is bowling 150 clicks and Aarav Pathak treats him like a bowling machine! That is the swagger we talked about! The Prince is holding court today!"
Ball 13.2: Single to third man. Ball 13.3: Kohli single. Ball 13.4: Single.
Ball 13.6: Milne was frustrated. He banged it in. 146 kmph Bouncer. It rose sharply, aiming for my head. I didn't duck. I didn't hook. I stood tall. I waited until the ball was right next to my face. I opened the face of the bat. The Upper Cut. But I didn't look behind. I kept looking straight down the pitch. The ball flew over the keeper's head. FOUR.
Ian Bishop (Comms): "He is toying with them! A no-look upper cut? In a World Cup Final? This is outrageous! He is dismantling the New Zealand attack piece by piece!"
End of Over 13.India: 96/2.Aarav Pathak: 33* (12 balls).
The momentum had shifted. The chase was truly on.
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Innings Scorecard
KL Rahul c Mitchell b Boult ..... 0 (3 balls, SR 0.00)
Rohit Sharma c Mitchell b Sodhi .... 22 (25 balls, SR 88.00)
Virat Kohli not out ...... 40* (38 balls, SR 105.26)
Aarav Pathak not out ...... 33* (12 balls, SR 275.00)
Extras: 1 (lb 1) Total: 96/2 in 13 overs (Run Rate: 8.12)
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End of Over 13.India: 96/2.Aarav Pathak: 33 (12 balls).* Virat Kohli: 40 (38 balls).* Target: 183.Equation: 87 runs needed off 42 balls.
Kane Williamson, the Black Caps skipper, stood at mid-off. His face was a mask of calm, the beard hiding any twitch of nervousness, but his eyes betrayed the ticking clock in his head. Adam Milne had been mauled in the previous over. The spinners had been neutralized by Aarav's onslaught. He needed a circuit breaker. He needed experience.
He tossed the ball to Tim Southee.
Southee, the veteran swing bowler, wiped his hands on his trousers, trying to get the dew off. He adjusted his field with military precision. Third man up inside the circle. Fine leg back on the fence. Long-on back. Deep mid-wicket back. He wasn't looking for swing anymore; the ball was old, wet, and ragged. He was looking for execution.
Ian Smith (Comms): "This is a massive moment in the context of the Final. Kane has gone back to his deputy. Tim Southee. He has seen it all, done it all in international cricket. But he is bowling to a man who is currently seeing the cricket ball as a beach ball. 87 off 42 is manageable in this era of T20, but a wicket here... a wicket here changes the landscape entirely. If Southee removes Aarav, the pressure falls back on Kohli, who is striking at just over 100."
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "Experience versus Youth. The crafty veteran against the young King. Southee will try to be full and wide, away from the hitting arc. He knows Aarav loves the leg side. He knows about the power."
I stood at the non-striker's end, adjusting my gloves. My breathing was rhythmic, synced with the humming of the System. The Brett Lee Recovery meant my legs felt fresh, springy, devoid of the lactic acid that should have been there after bowling four overs and batting like a maniac. The Viv Richards Aura meant I didn't feel the pressure; I felt like I owned every blade of grass.
Ball 14.1:Virat Kohli was on strike. He looked focused, his eyes darting around the field, calculating angles. He knew he had to get off strike. Southee ran in. He bowled a smart delivery—a slower cutter into the pitch, forcing Kohli to check his shot. Kohli tapped it with soft hands towards the vacant mid-wicket region and called for a quick single. "One, one, one!" I sprinted. We crossed easily. 1 Run.
India: 97/2.
Ball 14.2. I was on strike. 33 off 12 balls. The crowd volume spiked. They expected a boundary. They demanded it.
Tim Southee stood at the top of his mark. He looked at me. He saw my open stance, the way I cleared my front leg to access the leg side. He knew I was setting up for a lofted drive over long-off or a slog over mid-wicket.
Southee ran in. He didn't bowl the slower ball. He didn't bowl wide. He backed his skill. He aimed for the base of the middle stump. 142 kmph. It was the perfect yorker. Hard. Fast. Tailing in slightly. A ball designed to dig out batsmen who were trying to swing blindly. A ball that usually results in a toe-crusher or a dot.
Any other batsman would have jammed the bat down, hoping to squeeze it out for a single to keep the scoreboard ticking. But I wasn't just any batsman tonight. I was a conduit for history.
I saw the length early. Too full to drive. Too fast to sweep. There was only one shot. The shot I had watched a thousand times on TV growing up. The shot played by the man sitting in our dugout.
I didn't back away. I held my ground. I planted my back foot deep in the crease to create a millimeter of space. As the ball arrived at my toes, I didn't just block it. I whipped my wrists. It was a violent, unnatural torque of the forearms. The bat came down at a steep angle, digging the ball out of the blockhole, but I didn't stop the swing there. I continued the arc. I twisted my body, the bat finishing high over my head in a complete, flourishing circle.
The Helicopter Shot.
THWACK.
The sound was distinct—a sharp, metallic crack that cut through the humid air like a whip. The ball didn't just clear the infield. The sheer power generated from the wrists, amplified by the Brett Lee Mechanics, sent it soaring. It flew over deep mid-wicket. It flew over long-on. It kept rising into the Dubai night.
SIX!
The stadium erupted in a way that threatened to shatter the glass of the commentary box.
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "OH, MY GOODNESS! DID HE JUST DO THAT?! That was a yorker! A perfect yorker on middle stump! And he has whipped it out of the ground! Shades of MS Dhoni! That is the Helicopter Shot played to absolute perfection by the Prince! The power in those wrists is frightening!"
Isa Guha (Comms): "Unbelievable! The bat speed! The wrist power! Tim Southee cannot believe it. He bowled the ball he wanted to bowl, right in the blockhole, and it's gone 90 meters into the stands! That is just brute force combined with incredible technique! He excavated that!"
The camera cut immediately to the Indian dugout. The players were jumping. Rishabh Pant was holding his head in disbelief. Rohit Sharma was clapping furiously. But the camera zoomed in on one man. Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The Mentor. Dhoni was sitting with his legs crossed, a calm, almost monk-like smile on his face. He looked at the giant screen replays of the bat swing, then looked out at the center. He raised his right hand. A simple, slow Thumbs Up.
On the field, I saw him on the big screen. I turned towards the dugout. I raised my bat and gave a Thumbs Up back. Learned from the best, Mahi bhai.
Virat Kohli, at the non-striker's end, walked up to me. He was shaking his head, a wide, incredulous grin plastered on his face. "Yaar, tu kya kha ke aaya hai?" (Man, what did you eat before coming?) Virat laughed, punching my glove. "That was ridiculous. Absolutely ridiculous."
"Just watching the ball, Skip," I smirked. "And maybe channeling a bit of the Mentor."
India: 103/2.Equation: 80 off 40.
Ball 14.3: Southee was rattled. You could see it in his body language. He went wide outside off, trying to keep it away from my hitting zone, terrified of going straight again. I didn't chase it. I reached out, opened the face of the bat, and tapped it to deep point. Sensible cricket. Taking the single after the boundary. 1 Run.
Ball 14.4:Virat Kohli on strike. If my batting was heavy metal, a cacophony of power and dominance, Virat's was a classical symphony. Southee overcorrected. He tried to bowl a length ball to Kohli, hoping for a mistimed pull, trying to find the swing that wasn't there. Virat didn't try to hit it hard. He didn't slog. He just leaned forward. High elbow. Head still. The bat came down in a straight, pendulum line. The Straight Drive. It was pure timing. The ball raced past the bowler, dissecting mid-off and mid-on with geometric precision. It hit the boundary cushion before the fielders even moved.
FOUR.
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "And now the King joins the party! That is as pure as driven snow. We have the brute force of Aarav at one end and the classical elegance of Virat at the other. This is the perfect partnership. They are toying with the bowling now. Fire and Ice working in tandem!"
Ian Bishop (Comms): "This is the danger for New Zealand. You try to stop Aarav, you bowl to Kohli. You try to stop Kohli, you bowl to Aarav. It's a two-pronged attack that is picking them apart. Southee is under immense pressure here."
Ball 14.5: Southee went to his slower ball. Knuckleball. Virat read it from the hand. He waited, adjusted his hands, and glided it to short third man. They scrambled a quick single. 1 Run.
Ball 14.6: Last ball of the over. I was on strike. I wanted to keep the strike. I knew the next over was crucial. I checked the field. Deep cover was back. Southee bowled a wide yorker, trying to finish the over without damage. I dug it out to deep cover. "One! Just one!" We jogged the single.
End of Over 14.India: 110/2.Aarav Pathak: 41 (15 balls).* Virat Kohli: 46 (41 balls).*
Target: 183.Equation: 73 runs needed off 36 balls.
Ian Smith: "Well, that over has hurt. 14 runs off it. Southee bowled well, actually. He hit his yorkers. But when a guy can helicopter a yorker for six... what do you do as a captain? Kane Williamson is looking around the field. He's running out of options. The required rate is just over 12, but with these two at the crease, it feels like 8."
Sunil Gavaskar: "The required rate is still significant, Smithy. It's not a walk in the park. 73 off 36 is tough in a final. But with 8 wickets in hand, and these two set... India is favorites. Virat is approaching his fifty, Aarav is approaching another fifty. The platform is laid."
Ian Bishop: "It's the calmness. Look at Aarav. He just hit a monster six, and then took two singles. He isn't getting carried away. He is calculating. He knows he needs one big over—maybe a 20-run over—to kill the chase. He is hunting the weak link."
Isa Guha: "And the dew is playing a massive part. The ball is getting wet. You can see the towel coming out every ball. It's hard for the bowlers to grip. If they miss their length by an inch, Aarav is punishing them. That helicopter shot... that will stay in Southee's nightmares."
Harsha Bhogle: "This partnership is now 63 runs. That is the stat that matters. They came together when India was wobbling at 47/2. They have steadied the ship and put an outboard motor on it. New Zealand needs a wicket. Desperately. If this goes for two more overs, the cup is going to Mumbai."
On the field, the umpires called for a ball change. The ball was too wet and had lost shape after my six. While the umpires selected a new ball, Kane Williamson gathered his troops. He looked at Trent Boult. He looked at Ish Sodhi.
I walked to Virat. "Who bowls next?" I asked, wiping sweat from my brow. "Sodhi has one left. Or maybe Neesham," Virat said, panting slightly. "If it's Sodhi... we target him. The wet ball won't turn. If it's Neesham... pace on. Use it."
"Let's finish this," I said.
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Over 15. The Dubai International Stadium.India: 110/2.Target: 183.Equation: 73 runs needed off 36 balls.
The equation was tough, but the mood in the stands was optimistic. The partnership was flourishing. Kane Williamson, sensing the game drifting, decided to roll the dice. He brought back Mitchell Santner. It was a gamble. Spin against two set batsmen in the 15th over is usually carnage, but Santner is no ordinary spinner.
I was on strike. Santner fired it in flat. I didn't want to take a risk immediately. I punched it through the covers. 1 Run.
Ball 15.2:Virat Kohli on strike. He was on 46. The King was eyeing his first half-century of the tournament in the Final. Santner flighted it slightly, drifting it into the pads. Kohli read the length early. He took two quick, balanced steps down the track to smother the turn. Because the ball was turning into him, he confidently leaned into the shot. At the very last moment, Kohli slightly opened the bat face and used his wrists to create the inside-out angle. He met the ball on the half-volley, extending his arms fully. It was poetry in motion. The dip in Santner's delivery actually helped Kohli time it sweeter. The shot ended with a classical high-elbow follow-through—pure Kohli elegance. The ball sailed over extra cover. FOUR.
Harsha Bhogle (Comms): "That is a picture for the ages! Inside-out over extra cover! And that brings up the 50 for Virat Kohli! The King arrives when the Kingdom needs him most! Cometh the hour, cometh the man!"
I stood at the non-striker's end and clapped. Virat raised his bat, looking at the dugout. He wasn't smiling. The job wasn't done.
Ball 15.3: Santner went flatter. Kohli got down on one knee and swept it hard behind square. FOUR.Kohli on 54. The momentum was shifting violently towards India.
Ball 15.4: Santner adjusted. He went quicker, flatter, angling it into the back pad. Kohli went back to defend/flick it for a single. He missed. Thud. The ball hit the pad in line with the stumps. "HOWZAT!" Santner screamed. Williamson screamed. The keeper, Seifert, was jumping up and down. The umpire... shook his head. Not Out. Perhaps sliding down leg?
Williamson gathered his troops. They had a long discussion. Boult was pointing at the angle. "We review," Kane said, making the T-signal.
[DRS Initiated] The tension in the stadium spiked. The silence returned. Ball Tracking: Pitching: In Line. Impact: In Line. Wickets: HITTING.
The giant screen flashed OUT.
Virat Kohli lbw b Santner 54 (44)India: 119/3
Kohli froze. He looked at the screen in disbelief. Then, the anger took over. He slammed his bat against his pad, a visceral expression of frustration. He knew he had missed out on finishing the game. He walked off, head down, furious with himself.
Ian Smith (Comms): "Massive moment! The Review works for Kane! Kohli is gone! Just as he was looking to take the game away, Santner strikes! New Zealand are not letting go of this trophy easily!"
Suryakumar Yadav (SKY) walked out. The man with the 360-degree game. He played out a dot and took a single to keep the strike for the next over.
End of Over 15.India: 120/3.Equation: 63 runs needed off 30 balls.
Over 16: Adam Milne. Kane brought back his fastest bowler.
Ball 16.1: Milne banged it in wide of off stump. SKY saw the width. He went for the glory shot. The slice over covers. But the ball got big on him. He didn't get over the bounce. It went high. Too high. It swirled in the night sky. Kane Williamson, running back from mid-off, kept his eyes on the ball. He called for it. He took it calmly.
Suryakumar Yadav c Williamson b Milne 1 (2)India: 120/4
I kicked the pitch. Hard. A divot of dirt flew up. Why? Why the big shot? SKY walked past me, head down. The pressure was suffocating the middle order.
Ball 16.2:Rishabh Pant walked in. The X-factor. Milne didn't give him a sighter. 148 kmph. A perfect, inswinging yorker at the base of the leg stump. Pant tried to dig it out. He was late. The ball crashed into the stumps.
Rishabh Pant b Milne 0 (1)India: 120/5
Golden Duck in a World Cup Final. The stadium was stunned into silence. Two wickets in two balls. The Indian dugout was in shock. Rohit Sharma had his hands on his head.
Nasser Hussain (Comms): "It is unraveling! It is falling apart for India! Pant goes first ball! Adam Milne is on a hat-trick! From a position of strength, India are suddenly staring down the barrel! This is the New Zealand grit! They just don't know when they are beaten!"
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "Panic. That is the only word. Panic in the batting ranks. But... look who is still there. Aarav Pathak is at the non-striker's end. As long as he is there, nothing is impossible."
Hardik Pandya walked out. I walked up to him. I grabbed his helmet grille. "Listen to me," I hissed. "Do not hit the ball in the air. I don't care if you play five dots. Just get a single. Get me on strike. I will handle the rest." Hardik nodded.
Ball 16.3: Hat-trick ball. Milne to Hardik. Milne bowled a bouncer. Hardik did well. He swayed. He dropped his wrists. The ball hit the shoulder of the bat and rolled to third man. 1 Run.
Hardik survived. But more importantly, Aarav was back on strike.
India: 121/5.Equation: 62 runs needed off 21 balls.
The noise was deafening. The pressure was crushing. My heart was hammering against my ribs like a trapped bird. I walked away from the crease. I needed a moment.
I knelt on the pitch. I rested my forehead gently against the handle of my bat. I closed my eyes.
The noise of the crowd—the vuvuzelas, the screams, the chants—faded into a dull hum. The blurred figures of the New Zealand fielders dissolved into the background. I focused on my breathing. In. Out. I visualized the target. Not the runs. The ball. Just the ball.
[System Alert][Status: Ultra-Focus.][Brett Lee Mechanics: Peak.]
I opened my eyes. The world was sharp. High definition. I stood up. I looked at Adam Milne. He was pumped up. He thought he had me.
Let's dance.
Ball 16.4 : Milne ran in. He saw me deep in the crease. He tried the wide yorker line, executing the plan to keep it away from my arc. It was a good ball. Fast, tailing away. But I anticipated it. I moved towards the ball. I didn't slice it. I didn't drive it. I got under it. I played it straight back over the bowler's head. It wasn't a lofted drive; it was a punch. A violent, flat punch that defied the laws of geometry given the line of the ball. It sailed over the sightscreen.
SIX!
Ian Bishop (Comms): "That is a shot of a genius! He was on his knees a second ago, praying or meditating, and now he has delivered a sermon of power! Straight back over the sightscreen! He has silenced the doubts!"
Ball 16.5: Milne was rattled. He decided to go for the magic ball. A fast, full-length delivery outside off stump, targeting the outside edge. 146 kmph. Most batsmen would try to cover drive. I didn't. I went down on one knee, almost squatting low like a baseball catcher. I flipped the bat face. I flicked the ball over the wicketkeeper's head. It was the AB de Villiers Special. My body position looked physically improbable—falling over, knee on the ground—but the contact was pure. I essentially reversed the expected trajectory, turning a ball that should have been defended to point into a clean, airborne six over fine leg.
SIX!
Isa Guha (Comms): "What are we watching?! That is AB de Villiers in a blue jersey! How do you hit a 146kmph wide ball over fine leg?! He has manipulated the field, he has manipulated the bowler, he has manipulated physics! That is freakish!"
Aarav Pathak: 50 (18 balls).*
I didn't take off my helmet. I just raised my bat once, a sharp, angry gesture. Hardik ran up and hugged me, screaming. "One more!" I shouted at him. "One more!"
Ball 16.6: Milne lost the plot. He tried to bowl a yorker on leg stump to cramp me. He missed. Low full toss on the pads. Bad ball. I didn't overhit it. I just used the pace. I flicked it with a wristy flourish. It flew over deep square leg. SIX!
Three Sixes in a row.19 runs off the over and 2 wickets.
End of Over 16.India: 139/5.Equation: 44 runs needed off 24 balls.
Sunil Gavaskar (Comms): "And just like that, the pendulum swings again! From the depths of despair with two wickets, Aarav Pathak has dragged India back into the contest! 19 runs off the over! Adam Milne looks shell-shocked. He had 2 wickets in 2 balls, and he ends up conceding three sixes! This young man is not fighting for a win; he is fighting for a legacy!"
I walked to Hardik, punching his gloves. "We are still in this," I said, my eyes burning. "We are winning this."
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Author's Note: - 6000+ Words 😮😮{Long too long chapter...}
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