The coin flew up in the air, before falling to the ground.
"Heads. Bat or bowl?" Asked the umpire, looking at Akib.
"Bat." Said Akib.
Akib walked back to the dugout, before strapping his helmet and pads, walking out with the confident Anzal.
Anzal was at the striker's end, while Akib took the non striker's end.
Shrivastav motioned the Ashwandeep players to form a fielding formation which had no fielders at square leg and mid on, places where Anzal loved hitting at.
This was to taunt Anzal.
Anzal saw this, before thinking, "Are they taunting me?!"
Akib realized what Ali and Shrivastav had planned. They wanted to provoke Anzal, before happily taking his wicket away.
"Two can play at that game." Thought Akib.
Akib immediately gave Anzal a signal, telling him that he could bat as freely as he wanted.
Anzal smiled.
"Finally! I was waiting for this moment! The moment he would stop the planning and start the playing!" Thought Anzal.
Akib was going to do what Ali and Shrivastav never expected, make Anzal hit as much as possible.
Immediately, Anzal shifted his stance slightly.
Only Akib knew what that meant.
Chirag would be bowling the first over, who had long gotten over the smackdown he got against Aditya. The first ball was a ball right in the slot, meant to taunt Anzal more.
But it was a ball that would crown Anzal's rise in this match.
Anzal moved forward, before smashing it away into mid on, as if telling Ali that his psychological tactics wouldn't work on him.
Ali was surprised. He thought Akib would force Anzal to be defensive.
Instead, Akib had completely controlled the narrative, making Ali think Anzal would be completely defensive initially.
Now, Akib had completely flipped Ali's plan onto its head.
The next three balls all flew into mid on and square leg, all being either sixes or fours.
[ Anzal 20* (4) | Akib 0* (0) | 20/0 ]
The fifth ball was simply hit away for two runs, while the last ball was slightly mistimed but went for a four.
[ Anzal 26* (6) | Akib 0* (0) | 26/0 ]
Akib and Anzal dapped each other once, before switching their positions.
Now Akib, the string pulling anchor, began his innings. Anirudh was to bowl this over, and Akib had leant his bowling pattern beforehand.
According to Akib, the first ball was usually a inswinger.
And indeed, the ball swung inwards towards Akib. Akib saw a gap and drove the ball away for a four.
The second, a quick seam ball. The ball turned away from Akib.
"As predicted." Thought Akib.
Akib angled his bat downwards, and took 3 runs.
[ Anzal 26* (6) | Akib 7* (2) | 33/0 ]
Anirudh was surprised. It was as though Akib was reading his mind. He decided to change up the bowling a bit.
"Now, when he realizes that he is seen through, he will lean on his trusty bouncer to surprise us. Or, he will stay with his usual pattern." Thought Akib.
Once again, his uncanny talent of remembering more than most people was being utilized. He had purposefully allowed Anzal to take strike as he knew Anzal was much better than him against shorter balls.
The third ball as predicted was a bouncer, which Anzal calmly whacked away with a quick pull shot. The ball rushed through the bewildered Suraj, before going for a four.
[ Anzal 30* (7) | Akib 7* (2) | 37/0 ]
Akib then signaled Anzal to defend the next ball.
"Alright then, just this once, as a thank you for letting me go wild." Thought Anzal.
The next ball was a slower ball which Anzal blocked and took a single from.
"Good thing I didn't loft that. How did Akib even know that was a slower ball?" Thought Anzal. He looked at him, gaining a slight respect for Akib.
Akib was back on strike.
The next two balls were both doubles, as Akib still did not want to risk his wicket yet. He had predicted five of the six balls of Anirudh's over.
[ Anzal 31* (8) | Akib 11* (4) | 42/0 ]
Even though mid on and square leg now had fielders, runs were still leaking. If Ali and Shrivastav filled one gap, another would open up. It was now a game of deciding which gaps should be filled and which ones shouldn't.
Over after over went on, with Akib and Anzal stitching a perfect partnership. Neither Anirudh nor Chirag could break the partnership. It looked as though they would both march on with their wickets till the end of the innings.
[ Anzal 45* (17) | Akib 26* (19) | 71/0 ]
Ali had to think, and fast. Five overs of the powerplay had passed. If this continued, it would be a repeat of what happened in the original timeline. A complete drubbing, except this time in the brackets instead of the initial qualifiers.
Ali decided to switch the bowling up. For too long, Akib and Anzal were able to calmly predict and play through Ashwandeep.
The small group of Excellence students were cheering, as most of them couldn't attend due to competitive exam preparation, while the larger group of Ashwandeep supporters cut a sorry figure.
Ali decided to bring Siddarth to bowl. Sahwit's son calmly stood at point, ready for any balls coming his way. It had been a long time since he last batted, as at the CXAL and Sham PU College matches, Ali, Zayed and Shrivastav took care of everything.
Shrivastav called him over, and said, "You will bowl the next over."
"Why me?" Asked Siddarth.
"You don't bowl often, despite being an all rounder." Stated Shrivastav. "We need an unpredictable bowler, or at least someone who hasn't bowled often in the qualifiers."
"Whatever." Said Siddarth.
In another tent, Sahwit watched this spectacle. His son was to bowl the next over.
"Do I use the asset evolution on him?" Thought Sahwit. "No, the real estate properties are more important for now. Regular investment can dilute a property sometimes."
Sahwit for now, had decided to lay low. He had begun marking various real estate properties and businesses across Mangalore, so that he could slowly gain control over the economy of the small coastal town. After gaining enough resources and reputation, he would care of Ali.
The Asset Master beeped in the background. He had just brought a large chain of restaurants that was renowned throughout Mangalore.
On the field, Siddarth stretched himself, getting ready to bowl the next over.
"If this doesn't work, I don't know what will." Thought Ali.
Akib was facing Siddarth. He got ready to face his bowling. This was the only guy who Akib didn't know much of. He decided to be completely defensive this over.
Both Ali and Akib had thrown each other's plans out of the window, and the real match would soon begin.
TO BE CONTINUED
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