Year 2008 –
India vs Australia, 5th ODI, Mumbai. Series Decider
*This match
is going down to the wire. 9 required now of the last over. Sachin Tendulkar
has played a lone hand for India, yet again. Can he finish things off? It will
be Shiv though facing up to Brett Lee, Here we go* rung Ravi Shastri’s voice
Shiv was
sweating and nervous. The manic crowd atmosphere wasn't of much help either. *Sachin,
Sachin clap clap clap* echoed around the stadium. The pressure was on him to
take an all important single and give Sachin, his God the strike. To make matters worse, it
was his debut. He was 27 years old. A late debut for an Indian Cricketer, but he
had finally made it to the big league. He had given a decent bowling
performance picking up 2 wickets for 45 runs. But this was much more than he
had bargained for. He had hoped the batsmen would finish the job, but no. Shiv
checked on his gloves, adjusted his helmet, took a deep breath, tried to calm
his anxiety and took guard.
Brett Lee
was charging in. Shiv had seen this on TV before. He was used to sitting with
his friends and watching in awe as Lee charged in towards the batsmen. But now,
he was facing THE Brett Lee himself. No, there was no way he could do this. He
backed off from the delivery at the last instance. *Sachin, Sachin* had now
changed to *Booooooooo*. Shiv wasn’t sure what was going on. Sachin walked up
to him, kept a hand on his shoulder and said “Don’t worry man, You will be
alright. Just put bat on ball, and run. Go for it, Let’s do it for our team”.
Shiv nodded meekly.
Sachin
walked back to the non-striker’s end. It was only then something struck Shiv.
Sachin had just told him it will be alright. SACHIN had told him. Everything
had to be alright then. With a new found confidence, Shiv took guard. A
charging Brett Lee now looked like a Mozart's piece in motion. It could do no
harm. With each of Lee’s steps, Shiv’s confidence bolstered. Lee unleashed one
of his lethal bouncers. Shiv closed his eyes, semi-ducked and semi-swayed away
from the incoming ball, lifted his bat above his head, shouted “jai mata di”
and wafted his bat in the air. And ran. In spite of all his theatrics, the ball
had dropped just behind the stumps. He ran, Sachin ran, Lee ran, Wade dropped
his keeping gloves and ran, David Warner, from point, ran.
*A Nasty
bouncer from Lee, Shiv gets his bat on ball. The ball drops just behind the
stumps. This could be a tight run*
Shiv saw
nothing but the non-striker’s end. He had never run this fast. For that
instant, he looked like an Indian Olympic hopeful. As soon as he neared the
crease, he put in an almighty dive and made it. He felt relieved, kind of
elated. Sachin was going to be on strike now. 8 required of 5. Easy that. But
the relief was only for a wee bit. The crowd was hushed. There were a few
celebratory calls, but they sounded foreign. He checked the stumps at his end,
the bails were intact. "Oh Damn, don’t tell me what I think has happened",
*That is a
massive blow*
Shiv got up
and turned back ever so slowly.
*Shiv, on debut, might have just cost India the match here*
The
Australians were mobbing Wade and ruffling his hair.
*Sachin is
gone for 97. India in deep trouble. The Australians will think this is in their
hatchet. But as they always say, It aint’ over till the fat lady sings*
Yes, That
man with Jersey No.10 was walking back to the pavilion. The crowd was stunned.
Sachin Tendulkar was run out trying to attempt a non-existent single. Shiv, on
debut, had run the Little Master out. In
Mumbai. Sachin’s home ground. He hung his head in shame. Shame was too soft a
word. He was standing there at the non-striker’s end feeling like digging a
ditch right beside the pitch and burying his face in it. The fat lady had sung for him.
Year 2018-
India vs Australia, Bengaluru. T20 World Cup Final
*The crowd
is electric here as the match has come down to the wire. 10 required of the
last over for India to lift the T20 trophy. Shiv in his final match, will it be
a fairytale ending for him?*
Shiv was
standing in the non-striker’s end. This was his final match. He had called it
quits. He had quite an accomplished career. His batting had improved
drastically since his horrific debut match and had a decent bowling record to
go with it. He was India’s long impending answer to the “Who after Kapil Dev”
question.
In spite of
having a career which included a T20 WC win in 2016, overseas test series
victories in South Africa and Australia, and 10 test match tons, It was his
debut which flashed in his mind as the match approached the last over. It was
10 required of the last over again. He was donning the role of a senior batsman
now. No, he was most certainly not thinking of himself as Sachin Tendulkar.
That would have been criminal. Nor was the person batting along with him exactly
a debutant. He had 10 matches behind him. But, somehow he felt this was
similar. He felt a sense of deja vu.
India had
lost that match by 7 runs due to his ineptness, and hence had lost a home ODI series. The situation was quite
similar today. India needed 9 runs to get of the last over with just 2 wickets
remaining. Shiv was on 32 and couldn't take a single of the last ball of the penultimate over. Prashant was going to be on strike. He
had to ensure that Prashant didn't make the same mistake. The single had to be taken
first ball. Period.
The stakes
were much higher here. It was the finals of a world tournament. Shiv wanted to
make his exit in the grandest style possible. He wanted to hit the winning
shot. He was probably being selfish, but for all that he had done for Indian
Cricket he felt this was pardonable. On second thoughts, he wasn't really being
selfish. Shiv facing 5 balls would win the match for India. Where is the
selfish here? But this was about redemption. His debut performance had always been hurting him. He could change everything with this match, or so he felt. His mind was clouded with all these random thoughts.
The stadium
was buzzing. The final was in Bengaluru. Not in his hometown. Phew! At least
one thing that is not similar. He looked back at who was being given the ball.
James Pattinson it was. AH! There goes another similarity. A fast bowler. Why can’t it be
Glen Maxwell? Shiv met Prashant in a mid-pitch conference. “I am not gonna tell
anything different. Just take a single. First 5 rounds is on me tonight”.
Prashant just smiled and nodded. Shiv was confident that Prashant will do a
much better job of this than he had done in THAT fateful match. He smiled to
himself and went back to the non-striker’s end. Edgy, smiling and somewhat
confident.
*So, here
we go. Pattinson Charging in. It’s the rookie Prashant on strike. Can he sneak
in a single from somewhere*
As Ravi
Shastri’s voice was rumbling the television sets at home, the Bengaluru crowd
was buzzing with excitement and nervousness. Shastri with his clichés was right for
once. Pattinson was actually charging in.
Prashant looked confident, but his heart must have been thumping.
It was a
bouncer. Another similarity. Prashant brought out his best hook shot. But it
was only as good as getting a top-edge. Shiv bellowed “Ruuuunnnnnnnnnnn”.
Prashant ran. Shiv ran. The ball flew. Wade ran. Starc ran from Deep Fine Leg
and Steve Smith ran from Mid-Wicket.
*The ball
has taken the top edge and this has gone really high. Three people converging.
Who is going to take it?*
Shiv knew
there would be no problem completing the run, but he wanted Prashant to stay
with him till the end. Playing 5 balls with just 1 wicket remaining was going
to be risky. Keeping one eye on the ball, Shiv ambled on to the striker’s end.
*Would you
believe it? The ball has bisected the three fielders perfectly. Superb
placement by Prashant. More importantly, that brings Shiv on strike. India
would now feel they have one hand on the trophy already*
Yes.
Prashant was safe. Somehow, none of the 3 fielder had managed to grab the ball.
The run was completed quite safely in the end. 5 balls, 9 runs, 2 wickets, Shiv
on strike. Shastri had got it right again; India now had one hand on the
trophy. Or at least that’s what Shiv felt.
….
…..
…….
*Shiv
finishes off in style. India retains the T-20 trophy. After a humdinger of a
contest, India have got the better of Australia. And it is that man Shiv again.
Doing it for his team in his final match*
Shiv had
done it. If there was ever a fairy-tale ending, this was it. He had slogged the 4th
ball of the final over, through the mid-wicket region for 4. The match
was in the kitty. The trophy was India’s. India was now the No.1 team in the
world in all 3 formats. Personally, Shiv had just accomplished a perfect
retirement. His career was pretty short by Indian standards. Little less than
10 years. But he had a cricketing resume that anyone would have been proud of.
Hitting the winning runs in the finals of a global tournament in his retirement
match was now going to be the highlight.
Shiv was
letting the moment sink into him .His team-mates had mobbed him and the
celebrations were on. Shiv was struck between being emotional and elated. It
was a wonderful place to be in. “Not just the first five rounds, the entire
party will be on me today”, Shiv thought to himself.
…….
…..
….
"Man, why
do I think so much. Shut down your freaking mind. Yes, this match is ours. Just
finish it off dammit”, Shiv muttered to himself.
The
Australians were taking a bit too much time to get their field right. This was
the only trophy that had never adorned their extensive cabinet. They couldn't let
this one slip.
Shiv took a
few deep breaths. He had done this before. He had won matches for India on his
own. But somehow this felt different. One, he had never done it in this kind of
a tournament. Secondly, he had put himself in an undue pressure of this being
his final match and all the redemption thoughts.
*The
Australians have finally managed to get their fields right. Here we go,
Pattinson to Shiv. Where is Shiv gonna make this one land?”, Shastri was in his
element that night. This kind of a situation was made for him*
Shiv dug
his bat on the pitch. His mind was still cluttered, but he knew what he had to
do here. The fine leg was up, and he was
going to scoop this. Regardless of where the ball was pitched, the ball was going
up, over and between the keeper and short fine leg.
Pattinson
looked menacing as he began his run-up . Prashant was in all readiness to take a cheeky single or
convert the single to two. But Shiv had made up his mind; he was not going to
run. The ball was going to the boundary. Pattinson in his delivery stride, Shiv
made his initial movement and crouched a little.
The ball
was delivered. 145kmph. By the looks of
it, It was going to be on a good length, just around the line of off-stump.
Shiv made his moves, the bat now resembled a ramp and he was just waiting for
the right moment to direct the ball to the boundary. The ball kissed the bat, as
Shiv tried to hoick it over the keeper’s head.
*What has
Shiv done here? This is disaster for India. The middle stump has gone for a
walk*
The ball
did not hit the meat of the bat. It did not get the elevation that it needed
to. It just followed the path it was destined for and hit the middle stump at
the top. The bails flew and the stump cartwheeled.
*Shiv let the pressure get to him. You got to
question the shot selection here. India are now 9 down. With 9 required of 4 and
the main batsman back in the hut, this should now be Australia’s game to lose*
Shiv had
screwed it up again. This was everything that he feared. He had messed it up
for India yet again, albeit in a completely different way. He stared away at
the cartwheeling stump and sensed an elated Pattinson pass him to celebrate
with the keeper. The crowd was hushed. The Indian dugout had their heads in
their hands, visibly stunned. Shiv began the longest 70m walk he had ever
taken/will ever take in his life. Fairy-tale endings are not as frequent as they
should be. Shiv finished his career just the way he started it. Redemption was
not his solace.
*But as
they say, It isn't over till the fat lady sings*
Yes, few
things don’t change. India had lost the match by 7 runs.
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