God of Cricket!-Chapter 40: A Cameo of Greatness

Chapter 40: A Cameo of Greatness

"Until when does his contract last?" Amre asked, watching Aryan chug water.

"Well, from the previous scholarship contract he signed with the MCA, he will be with the state association until he’s 18 with a standard transfer release clause of ₹35 Lakhs," Kulkarni answered.

"Oh okay, but from the way he’s playing, especially with the IPL (Indian Premier League) rumors starting up for next year, you’d want to improve his stipend and raise his release clause before he gets snatched by a corporate team or another state association," Amre said seriously.

"Ask the MCA Secretary to send Aryan’s file to the guys in the administration office and ask them to negotiate a new contract with him. Ask them to be a bit generous. Maybe bump it to ₹10 Lakhs a year," Amre added.

He had liked what he saw from Aryan and didn’t want a situation where the player would be poached by Railways or Services or even a scout from the rumored Bangalore franchise (RCB) when he was settling in his squad in the middle of the season.

Coach Kulkarni nodded before he took out a phone to make a call to the MCA office.

Coach Amre turned to the players and had a bit of a talk with them about the season goals before closing the training session.

At the end of the session, Aryan tried to go and wash his face before he left but was called by Praveen Amre.

Aryan was a bit surprised as he didn’t expect the Head Coach to have noticed him so personally on day one. Aryan walked slowly to where the Coach was and stood in front of him, holding his helmet.

Coach Amre stood there and watched him for a bit, analyzing his physique and demeanor, before speaking.

"Hello Aryan, I’m Praveen."

Aryan was a bit surprised with his humble introduction. Aryan quickly grabbed the Coach’s hand before replying, "Hello Coach Praveen."

Coach Amre looked at him some more before speaking. "You’re a very wonderful player, Aryan. To be in the Senior Mumbai Probables at the age of 15 is a great accomplishment. Sachin did it, I did it, and now you are here."

"I hope you can play like you play in training against other states because I don’t like extra baggage. And I will send you back to the U19s or U23s if you cannot handle the responsibility of being in the Senior team, if you have a bad attitude towards training, and if you cannot match the level I require."

Aryan looked at him with confidence, his hazel eyes shining. "I won’t let you down, Coach."

Coach Amre looked at him before telling him he could go. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

Aryan walked off thinking about the Coach’s words. He was determined to prove himself. He knew from his previous life as Raghav that Mumbai cricket was ruthless; performance was the only currency that mattered.

Aryan got home and rested a bit. After having dinner with Priya and Riya, Aryan went to his room and started doing his 10th Standard project work.

He was in his final year of High School (SSC), and Aryan was still juggling studies with his professional cricket career. He had not let all these promotions deter him from his studies. Instead, thanks to the Intelligence Elixir, he had redoubled his efforts in studies to ensure he had a backup plan, or rather, to keep his mother happy.

Priya opened the door quietly and saw Aryan studying under the lamplight. She smiled at her son before closing the door.

She went a bit farther down the hall before stopping at Riya’s door. She opened Riya’s door and was a bit surprised to see her daughter studying history intently.

Riya was very smart but usually preferred drawing or listening to music over studying, so today was a change.

"Huh, maybe seeing Aryan study has influenced her," Priya thought before closing the door softly.

Riya took her earbuds out and turned back to face her door as she thought someone had opened the door to her room. She redirected her focus to her studies after she saw no one.

The night neared and Aryan was halfway done with the Science journal work due Friday. He decided to stop since he had a day more to complete it.

Aryan went to sleep and woke up the next day. After breakfast, he headed to school on his bicycle.

The day was like any other as Aryan breezed through the classes. Some of the girls also fawned over Aryan a bit during recess, noticing his athletic build.

"A handsome face, muscular and lean body, good at cricket to the extent that he now plays for the Mumbai Senior Team. He is none other than Mr. Pretty Boy Aryan Sharma."

Suresh (Sosa equivalent), Aryan’s classmate and former U16 teammate, said with a mocking tone during recess as they sat in the canteen.

Aryan had found out that Suresh had transferred from his old school to Aryan’s high school in his first year. He was about a year and some months older than Aryan (age fraud was common, but Suresh was legit).

Although both of them were in the same grade. Aryan was glad to have found someone with similar interests in cricket.

Suresh had dazzled at the U19 level recently as a wicketkeeper and was the next in line to be promoted to the Probables alongside Vikram who had also performed marvelously. They would be promoted at the end of the following season if nothing happens or earlier if injuries strike the senior keepers.

Aryan looked at Suresh as he spewed his nonsense about popularity.

Aryan rolled his eyes at Suresh’s words.

"So are you going to play in the upcoming Inter-School match?" Suresh asked, biting into a samosa.

Aryan shrugged before saying, "Do I look like the coach to you?" before turning away.

Suresh didn’t take Aryan’s remarks to heart and continued, his eyes gleaming with trivia.

"Wow bro, do you realize? If you debut in the Ranji Trophy this season, you could break the record of being one of the youngest to debut for Mumbai. You might even beat Sachin Tendulkar’s record!"

Sachin debuted at 15 years and 232 days. Aryan was currently 15 years and a few months. It was close.

Aryan didn’t really care about these kinds of things—he just wanted to play—but hearing it now, it wasn’t so bad to hold these kinds of records alongside the ’God of Cricket’.

Suresh looked at Aryan as he was grinning and was really unsettled by it.

"Don’t get ahead of yourself," Suresh said, shaking his head and starting to eat his food.

After school, Aryan went home before his mum took him to the Wankhede training complex.

Aryan was now eager to turn 18 so he could get a license and drive a bike or car, as he didn’t always want to trouble his mom to bring him to training in the crazy Mumbai traffic.

He could take the local train or bus but didn’t because of its unreliability and the crushing crowd; he could be late or risk injury.

Aryan looked ahead and saw the MCA Logo (Mumbai Cricket Association) on the stadium gate and smiled before entering the complex.

Aryan changed into his training whites before heading out to the nets.

The training session was light and was only going to last an hour and 30 minutes, but Aryan as usual had come 30 minutes earlier to get some work in before the seniors came in.

Aryan started performing his Skill Shots in the empty net so he could improve the Skill Completion.

He practiced the Switch Hit and the Knuckleball grip repeatedly. The System would only notify him of a big improvement, but gradually Aryan’s skill move completion was improving by the second.

Coach Amre, who had arrived early and was watching from the dressing room balcony, saw Aryan practicing the reverse sweeps and scoops. He was now certain that he wanted the player to play as a Finisher down the order who could exploit the field in the final overs.

But at last, it all came down to the player’s comfort.

He couldn’t force him to play a position he didn’t like every day, or force him to bowl at the death if he wasn’t ready.

He could at most deploy him to the lower order for more attacking power if things weren’t going well for the team’s top order.

Coach Amre continued with his paperwork, glancing occasionally at the nets, and Aryan also continued with his drills as the other players like Rohit and Ajit started to arrive.

"Until when does his contract last?" Amre asked, watching Aryan chug water.

"Well, from the previous scholarship contract he signed with the MCA, he will be with the state association until he’s 18 with a standard transfer release clause of ₹35 Lakhs," Kulkarni answered.

"Oh okay, but from the way he’s playing, especially with the IPL (Indian Premier League) rumors starting up for next year, you’d want to improve his stipend and raise his release clause before he gets snatched by a corporate team or another state association," Amre said seriously.

"Ask the MCA Secretary to send Aryan’s file to the guys in the administration office and ask them to negotiate a new contract with him. Ask them to be a bit generous. Maybe bump it to ₹10 Lakhs a year," Amre added.

He had liked what he saw from Aryan and didn’t want a situation where the player would be poached by Railways or Services or even a scout from the rumored Bangalore franchise (RCB) when he was settling in his squad in the middle of the season.

Coach Kulkarni nodded before he took out a phone to make a call to the MCA office.

Coach Amre turned to the players and had a bit of a talk with them about the season goals before closing the training session.

At the end of the session, Aryan tried to go and wash his face before he left but was called by Praveen Amre.

Aryan was a bit surprised as he didn’t expect the Head Coach to have noticed him so personally on day one.

Aryan walked slowly to where the Coach was and stood in front of him, holding his helmet.

Coach Amre stood there and watched him for a bit, analyzing his physique and demeanor, before speaking.

"Hello Aryan, I’m Praveen."

Aryan was a bit surprised with his humble introduction. Aryan quickly grabbed the Coach’s hand before replying,

"Hello Coach Praveen."

Coach Amre looked at him some more before speaking. "You’re a very wonderful player, Aryan. To be in the Senior Mumbai Probables at the age of 15 is a great accomplishment. Sachin did it, I did it, and now you are here."

"I hope you can play like you play in training against other states because I don’t like extra baggage. And I will send you back to the U19s or U23s if you cannot handle the responsibility of being in the Senior team, if you have a bad attitude towards training, and if you cannot match the level I require."

Aryan looked at him with confidence, his hazel eyes shining. "I won’t let you down, Coach."

Coach Amre looked at him before telling him he could go.

Aryan walked off thinking about the Coach’s words.

He was determined to prove himself. He knew from his previous life as Raghav that Mumbai cricket was ruthless; performance was the only currency that mattered.

Aryan got home and rested a bit. After having dinner with Priya and Riya, Aryan went to his room and started doing his 10th Standard project work.

He was in his final year of High School (SSC), and Aryan was still juggling studies with his professional cricket career.

He had not let all these promotions deter him from his studies. Instead, thanks to the Intelligence Elixir, he had redoubled his efforts in studies to ensure he had a backup plan, or rather, to keep his mother happy.

Priya opened the door quietly and saw Aryan studying under the lamplight. She smiled at her son before closing the door.

She went a bit farther down the hall before stopping at Riya’s door. She opened Riya’s door and was a bit surprised to see her daughter studying history intently.

Riya was very smart but usually preferred drawing or listening to music over studying, so today was a change.

"Huh, maybe seeing Aryan study has influenced her," Priya thought before closing the door softly.

Riya took her earbuds out and turned back to face her door as she thought someone had opened the door to her room. She redirected her focus to her studies after she saw no one.

The night neared and Aryan was halfway done with the Science journal work due Friday. He decided to stop since he had a day more to complete it.

Aryan went to sleep and woke up the next day. After breakfast, he headed to school on his bicycle.

The day was like any other as Aryan breezed through the classes. Some of the girls also fawned over Aryan a bit during recess, noticing his athletic build.

"A handsome face, muscular and lean body, good at cricket to the extent that he now plays for the Mumbai Senior Team. He is none other than Mr. Pretty Boy Aryan Sharma."

Suresh , Aryan’s classmate and former U16 teammate, said with a mocking tone during recess as they sat in the canteen.

Aryan had found out that Suresh had transferred from his old school to Aryan’s high school in his first year. He was about a year and some months older than Aryan (age fraud was common, but Suresh was legit).

Although both of them were in the same grade. Aryan was glad to have found someone with similar interests in cricket.

Suresh had dazzled at the U19 level recently as a wicketkeeper and was the next in line to be promoted to the Probables alongside Vikram who had also performed marvelously.

They would be promoted at the end of the following season if nothing happens or earlier if injuries strike the senior keepers.

Aryan looked at Suresh as he spewed his nonsense about popularity.

Aryan rolled his eyes at Suresh’s words.

"So are you going to play in the upcoming Inter-School match?" Suresh asked, biting into a samosa.

Aryan shrugged before saying, "Do I look like the coach to you?" before turning away.

Suresh didn’t take Aryan’s remarks to heart and continued, his eyes gleaming with trivia.

"Wow bro, do you realize? If you debut in the Ranji Trophy this season, you could break the record of being one of the youngest to debut for Mumbai. You might even beat Sachin Tendulkar’s record!"

Sachin debuted at 15 years and 232 days. Aryan was currently 15 years and a few months. It was close.

Aryan didn’t really care about these kinds of things—he just wanted to play—but hearing it now, it wasn’t so bad to hold these kinds of records alongside the ’God of Cricket’.

Suresh looked at Aryan as he was grinning and was really unsettled by it.

"Don’t get ahead of yourself," Suresh said, shaking his head and starting to eat his food.

After school, Aryan went home before his mum took him to the Wankhede training complex.

Aryan was now eager to turn 18 so he could get a license and drive a bike or car, as he didn’t always want to trouble his mom to bring him to training in the crazy Mumbai traffic.

He could take the local train or bus but didn’t because of its unreliability and the crushing crowd; he could be late or risk injury.

Aryan looked ahead and saw the MCA Logo (Mumbai Cricket Association) on the stadium gate and smiled before entering the complex.

Aryan changed into his training whites before heading out to the nets.

The training session was light and was only going to last an hour and 30 minutes, but Aryan as usual had come 30 minutes earlier to get some work in before the seniors came in.

Aryan started performing his Skill Shots in the empty net so he could improve the Skill Completion.

He practiced the Switch Hit and the Knuckleball grip repeatedly.

The System would only notify him of a big improvement, but gradually Aryan’s skill move completion was improving by the second.

Coach Amre, who had arrived early and was watching from the dressing room balcony, saw Aryan practicing the reverse sweeps and scoops.

He was now certain that he wanted the player to play as a Finisher down the order who could exploit the field in the final overs.

But at last, it all came down to the player’s comfort.

He couldn’t force him to play a position he didn’t like every day, or force him to bowl at the death if he wasn’t ready.

He could at most deploy him to the lower order for more attacking power if things weren’t going well for the team’s top order.

Coach Amre continued with his paperwork, glancing occasionally at the nets, and Aryan also continued with his drills as the other players like Rohit and Ajit started to arrive.

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It was the day of the match, and Aryan had woken up early because of the excitement he was feeling over the possibility of him playing his first senior team match for Mumbai. 1

It was a Saturday, and the match was going to be played at 2:30 PM (Day/Night fixture). 2The match would be played at the Wankhede Stadium, which was the fortress of the Mumbai Ranji Team. 3The stadium had a capacity of roughly 33,000 (pre-renovation). 4

Aryan had already gotten two VIP passes from Coach Amre, and he had given them to his mum, Priya, and his sister, Riya. 5The team Mumbai would be playing against were one of the giants of the North Zone, and that was Delhi. 6

Since it was a Saturday, Aryan went for his daily task; although they weren’t giving him stat points anymore due to the system update, he still got Legend Points (LP) from them. 7

Aryan entered the shower after he came back from completing his shadow batting drills. 8He stood under the showerhead as cold water streamed down his back, calming his nerves. 9

Aryan, after the shower, came out with a towel around his waist. 10After drying himself, he put on a pair of comfortable track pants and a loose black t-shirt. 11

"I thought you’d go for training in the morning since it’s your senior debut and all," Priya said as she saw Aryan descending from the stairs. 12

"Well, the Coach said we will meet at the complex 4 hours before the start of the match for some light nets," Aryan responded. 13

"Ok, but can you go and wake up your sister?" Priya added. 14

Aryan stood up from the couch before heading upstairs again. 15He got to Riya’s door and knocked but got no reply. 16He tried opening it, and it opened as it wasn’t locked. 17

Aryan saw his sister sleeping peacefully and decided to play with her a bit. 18He pinched her nose, not allowing her to breathe until she woke up gasping. 19

She was still feeling groggy, and Aryan decided to go further. 20He pulled down the window blinds, and the harsh Mumbai afternoon sunlight fell on Riya, making her feel like a vampire exposed to the sun. 21

She woke up annoyed while Aryan told her to freshen up and come down. 22Priya had already finished making Poha and Chai by the time Riya came down. 23The family of three slowly enjoyed their breakfast. 24

Aryan, after breakfast, drank a Conditioning Elixir and a Recovery Elixir to be in the best state he could be before the match. 25

After that, Aryan just sat there with his Nokia N95, reading about the rumors happening in the world of cricket via WAP internet. 26

The IPL (Indian Premier League) buzz was at its highest. The BCCI had officially announced the tournament, and franchises were scouting aggressively.

Rumors were flying that the Bangalore franchise (RCB) was preparing a massive bid for Jacques Kallis and Rahul Dravid, while Mumbai Indians were locking down Sachin Tendulkar.

Aryan stared at his phone as he read on and thought, "Very soon, franchises are going to be offering crores for me to play for them." 27

Aryan surfed the internet some more before deciding to rest his eyes for the match a bit. 28

...