Frank - last ball of the match
1 ball 2 runs,
They know i need a boundary, get the ball out of the circle. They also know that a game TIED is as bad as lost. They had the upper hand here, and they wouldn't want to lose it over a tie breaker. But they would need to prepare for the event, i manage to hit it hard.
A yorker is too obvious, i would swing hard, and i would hit.
A bouncer will be too risky, even if i touch it, i can easily take two.
Should be a goodlength. They are coming closer in the ring, they want it to be good length,
Goodlength its gonna be.
..
..
..
Wait, there is something wrong. This is too obvious. they dont look confident, their captain has told them a bold strategy. and they don't believe it.
Samir is a smart kid, fooled many batsmen.
if he wants me to think this is a good length delivery, what does he want me to do?
Take a front foot stride, and flick it off the fine leg, there is no man there.
He is almost inviting me to do it.
WHY?
what kind of ball will be most difficult to play at a front foot stride, what kind ...?
..
...
..
oh crap, its gonna be a fucking Yorker.
-------------------------------
Frank - first ball of the match
"Seems like a bunch of bitches decided to run a whorehouse",
"Don't listen to him, VJ. Walsh is just trying to make you lose yourself. Calm down"
But VJ was listening, i knew it had begun. His partner was trying to cool him down while he was playing Walsh. Walsh is a fucking animal, we know that. he claims wicket by butchering the other side, with his pace and bounce, followed by his nasty words. As soon as the other side starts falling out of his rhythm, we just hold him back. No point wasting energy when the opposition is calm. They are just going to whack him around.
But the opposition is everything but calm right now. A bouncer to the head, some few angry words exchanged, and the worst of it, a shrink telling a senior player to calm down. I think he is doing the most damage from our side. there's gonna be some action pretty soon.
He might throw his wicket away, trying to step on a frontfoot, while Walsh whacks him another bouncer, caught and bowled worst case. or he might be the calm types, getting to rotate the strike, buying some time to cool oneself off. from his face he doesn't look the latter. and he is letting himself get angry, get mad. he wants to show walsh around a couple of sixes. bad move, we know he is weakest when he is angry. I just need to make sure he stays angry, and that I don't drop the catch when it comes my way.
Which I didn't.
But it had started then. An ugly way to get the best batsman of the opposition out, and when you start an ugly game, you know they are going to come back at you. Bouncers from the first over, thrashing all around from the bowler and the wicketkeeper. Aand the batsmen would have to face it, our batsmen. but walsh doesn't care, nor does the rest of the youngsters here. People who think cricket's a gentleman's game, ought to retire. prolly they are right.
---------------------------------
Abhay - last delivery
It was his fucking fault. All his fault.
Frank wouldn't be here, he wouldn't be batting here. Out first delivery, My first delivery, but that bastard was sleeping. They call him VJ, as some fucking cool version of his real stinking name, Vijender. The fucking idiot. Had the balls to call me to shut up, when he dropped Frank at 8. Samir said calm down, we will get him. Yes fucking we will get him, he is now in front of you, batting at 140 freaking half the runs the whole side managed to get. I just fucking wish VJ dead now.
And I just wish Frank doesn't notice him at long on, its our only chance. If he knows this is all setup for a yorker, Vj is the only one who can stop the ball. And I honestly don't like that idea.
---------------------------------
Samir - the last over.
11 runs are not easy to get, in the last over, if we manage to keep Frank away from strike.
what am i doing - wishful thinking?
This Manhattan at crease doesn't look like a weep either. You lend him a touch on the ball, and you would never know where it vanished. And then there is this trouble. Abhay and VJ have been quarelling like kids. Abhay doesn't seem to understand, it was an honest miss. Vj is already shattered with what happened on the pitch, and then this ball came quickly to him. The best he could do was to stick a palm out in time. From where Abhay stood, it looked as if he was careless. From my angle, he saved 4 runs.
If only he could have grabbed onto the catch, we would have been celebrating now. If only Bharath had stayed a little longer on the crease, we would have had couple of more runs to defend. But I cannot blame him either, if only the umpires heard the ball hitting the bat before it hit the pad, he wouldn't have been out in the first place. If only Srisanth had overthrown a little slower, we wouldn't have given 17 in the last over. Not that 11 runs are easy to get, but it is easier than 15 in the last over.
But this is not an if only game. This is the last over, and 11 runs are still not easy to get.
A fight between our two senior most players gets to the team. And it is not easy for me to tell the kids to stop brawling; they brought me in the team. I just hope Abhay keeps his mind in the over, and bowls this buffalo out, before he sings death of our careers.
--------------------------------
VJ - the last over
I cannot fail my team. They say I was tricked by a small coward named Walsh. Thats all they think. They don't know.
That prick, telling me to calm down, fucked my wife. I still cannot forgive him. Divorce or not, she still was my wife. How could she marry a lad half her age, when she was married to me. I tried to forgive him. But the words to calm down remind me of the two in bed. Reminds me of She asking him to calm me down. She putting her head on his shoulder to weep in the divorce room.
I cant believe this, the girl of my life. She is just a town whore, she ditched me - when the whole country wanted to fuck me just once. Shit, WHY DO I STILL HATE HER SO MUCH?
Shit.
Now that i think about it, I threw my wicket away. It was stupid of me. My wife is gone, and so is that prick.
That on top of the dropped catch, the media is going to screw me. They will not say Abhay bowled too few bouncers, or that Srisanth picked second last over to throw a stupid throw, or that Sagar bowled too short to contain them.
That wouldn't count. They would screw me.
Since I was supposed to win this match for us. I failed.
-----------------------------
The last delivery
Abhay : Its just one last delivery. I see the ball drifting towards Frank in slow motion. Frank is shifting back. He figured out .. SHIT
Frank: Its a fucking yorker, dammit. Back to backfoot, and just hope my bat swings hard enough to get it out of the circle.
Samir: crap he figured it out, the balls out of the circle, they can easily take 2 runs, unless ..
VJ: I see this in some slow motion, the ball is flowing towards the screen. I dived, i am really slow, the ball is past the rope, still in air. I can cut it before the sight screen, just enough to get it inside the field, ... just .. enough.
Its all dark, I can hear voices from far away. Abhay is shouting something. I had hit the sight screen, prolly broke my arm. I see the ball dropping, probably i couldn't cut it enough, it is going to touch the rope. I failed.
Its all dark now. I hear a voice from far away.
"Caaaaaaaaaaaaaatch iitt" is the voice, Abhay is shouting. He wants me to catch it. I haven't failed yet. not just yet. one foot inside the rope, the balls is almost at the ground, i need to strech, my legs hurting, probably something's broken. I hold the ball. I grab it.
I hear sounds. a lot of them. From far away. . we won the world cup finals. I haven't failed. not just yet ..
