Score: 49/5 Target: 145 Equation: 96 runs needed off 70 balls.
The HPS fast bowler, Arjun, walked back to his mark. He was fuming. A four? By this little stick figure?
Arjun rubbed the ball on his trousers aggressively. The red stain on his white pants grew larger. He didn't look at Sai. He looked at the stumps. He wanted to break them.
Ball 2: Arjun didn't run. He sprinted. He put his entire 5-foot-10 frame into the delivery. Bouncer.
It was fast. On this turf wicket, it skidded and rose towards Sai's throat.
[DISSONANCE] Alert: Impact Danger.
Sai didn't have the strength to hook it. If he tried, the heavy ball would knock the bat out of his hands. He did the only thing he could. He dropped his wrists and collapsed his knees, swaying away. The ball buzzed past his helmet grill like an angry hornet.
"Oooooh! Well bowled Arjun!" the keeper screamed. "He's scared! Look at him shivering!"
Sai stood up. He wasn't shivering. He was resetting his stance. He looked at the non-striker, Sandeep. Sandeep looked terrified. He was holding his bat like a shield, praying the ball wouldn't come to his end.
Ball 3: Arjun went full again, hoping for the yorker. He missed the length slightly. Low full toss.
Sai saw the gap at mid-off. His 20-year-old brain screamed: Drive it hard! He stepped forward, tightening his grip to smash it.
[DISSONANCE] Warning: Forearm weakness. Bat speed insufficient for power drive.
Sai felt the jarring "itch" in his elbows mid-swing. Stop. Don't hit hard. He instantly loosened his grip. Instead of a smash, he just guided the ball. Tap.
The ball rolled to mid-off. "Run!" Sai screamed.
He sprinted. His Segar rubber studs dug into the turf. Sandeep hesitated, then ran. The mid-off fielder swooped in and threw. Missed the stumps.
A single. 50/5.
Sai walked to the non-striker's end. He tapped Sandeep's shoulder. "Sandeep, listen. Don't look at the bowler's face. Look at his hand. Just block. Don't try to hit."
Sandeep nodded, sweating profusely. "Vaadu champesthadu ra manalni..." (He will kill us, man...)
The Grind: Overs 9 to 15
The match turned into a weird game of cat and mouse.
The HPS bowlers were the "Sledgehammers." They bowled fast, they sledged, they set aggressive fields. Sai became the "Mosquito."
He was annoying. He didn't hit boundaries. He physically couldn't. The boundary ropes at HPS were 60 meters away—too far for his 10-year-old muscles unless he timed it perfectly with the pace.
So, he stole singles.
Over 12: Spinner bowling. Sai stepped out. The spinner shortened the length. Sai adjusted mid-shot. [CLICK]. Soft hands. Dropped the ball at his feet. "Yes! Quick single!" The keeper scrambled, but Sai was already home.
Over 14: Pacer bowling. Wide outside off. Sai opened the face of the bat. Glide. The ball rolled to Third Man. "Two runs!" Sai ran the first one hard. "Turn! Turn!" He pushed Sandeep for the second. They made it.
Score: 88/5. Equation: 57 runs needed off 30 balls.
The HPS Captain, Rohan, was getting frustrated. "Bring the field up! Stop the singles!"
The fielders crowded inside the 30-yard circle. Now, Sai thought. The Risky Zone.
Over 16: The Pressure Cooker
The bowler was Vikram, a medium pacer. Fielders at Mid-off and Mid-on were up.
Ball 1: Length ball. Sai pressed forward. He saw the Mid-on fielder standing close. If I hit it on the ground, he stops it. No run. If I hit it in the air... I might get caught.
He needed to chip it. Just over the fielder's head. [DISSONANCE] Risk: High. Control required: Absolute.
Sai took a deep breath. He trusted the System. He leaned back slightly to get under the ball. He used his wrists to "scoop-drive" it.
[CLICK]
The ball lofted gracefully. It wasn't a power shot. It was a lob. It sailed just over the jumping Mid-on fielder's fingertips. It landed safely in the empty outfield and rolled.
"Run! Three runs!" Sai yelled.
He and Sandeep ran like maniacs. One. Two. Three.
Sandeep was gasping for air, clutching his chest. "I... can't... breathe..."
"Breath later!" Sai ordered. "We need 50 runs."
The Sledge
As Sai stood at the non-striker's end, the HPS wicketkeeper, a chubby boy with expensive Oakley sunglasses, walked past him.
"Hey, midget," the keeper said in English. "Your friend is going to pass out. Just give up. Go back to your government school."
Sai froze. Government school? St. Ann's is a private school, you idiot. Just because we don't have peacocks doesn't mean we are poor.
Something snapped in Sai. Not anger. Focus. The "Zone Trigger."
He looked at the keeper. "Mind your keeping, Anna. You dropped a catch in the 4th over."
The keeper turned red. "What did you say?"
"Focus," Sai said calmly, adjusting his helmet.
Over 18: The Equation Tightens
Score: 115/5. Target: 145. Needed: 30 runs off 12 balls.
This was T20 territory. Sandeep had somehow survived, mostly by swinging his bat with his eyes closed and getting thick edges that flew for lucky fours.
But now, the Zonal bowler, Arjun, was back for the penultimate over. Arjun looked tired but dangerous.
Ball 1: Arjun bowled a perfect yorker. Sai dug it out. [CLICK]. Dot ball. Damn.
Ball 2: Another yorker attempted. Missed by an inch. Low full toss. Sai flicked it. Deep mid-wicket. Only one run.
Equation: 29 off 10. Sandeep on strike.
Arjun saw the weak link. He smiled. He ran in and bowled a straight, fast ball. Sandeep swung blindly across the line. Miss. CLATTER.
The middle stump cartwheeled out of the ground.
"OUT! YEAHHH!" Arjun roared, pumping his fist.
Sandeep walked back, head down. St. Ann's was 116/6.
The new batsman walked in. Venu (The Spinner). Venu was shaking. He looked like he was walking to the gallows.
Sai met him halfway. "Venu," Sai said.
"Sai, I can't bat ra! I'm a bowler!" Venu panicked.
"Just give me the strike," Sai said. "Touch the ball and run. Even if the keeper has the ball, just run. I will dive."
Equation: 29 runs off 9 balls.
It seemed impossible. Sai needed boundaries. But he had no power. How do you hit boundaries without power?
Geometry.
Ball 4: Venu managed to edge a single to third man. Sai on strike. 8 balls left. 28 needed.
Arjun ran in. He saw the field. Third man was inside the circle (bad captaincy). Fine leg was deep. Arjun bowled outside off.
Sai did something unexpected. He shuffled way across his stumps, exposing all three sticks. He went down on one knee.
The Paddle Sweep. against a fast bowler.
[DISSONANCE] Warning: High Risk. Helmet Impact Likely if missed.
Sai ignored the warning. He watched the ball. He didn't hit it. He just used Arjun's 120kph pace. He angled the bat fine.
[RESONANCE]
Tick.
The ball kissed the bat and flew behind the keeper, racing very fine. Because Third Man was up, he couldn't chase it. The ball raced on the lightning-fast turf.
FOUR.
"Are you mad?!" The HPS keeper yelled. "You'll break your face!"
Sai stood up and dusted his knees. "24 off 7," Sai muttered.
Ball 6: Arjun panicked. He tried a slower ball. It sat up. Sai waited. Waited. He opened the face of the bat late. Late Cut.
It sliced past the point fielder. Another FOUR.
Equation: 20 runs needed off the last over.
The St. Ann's dugout was screaming. Even Gopal Sir was standing up.
Sai looked at the scoreboard. He was tired. His 10-year-old legs were burning. The "Dissonance" in his wrists was becoming a permanent throb.
One over. 20 runs. Me vs The Captain.
Rohan (HPS Captain) took the ball for the final over. He was a medium pacer. He looked at Sai. Sai looked at the boundary.
I need 5 perfect reps, Sai thought.
He tapped his bat. Tap. Tap.