God of Cricket!-Chapter 42: Matchday

Chapter 42: Matchday

Aryan walked inside his apartment and smelled an unfamiliar scent—a mix of expensive perfume and freshly brewed coffee—wafting through the living room.

"It seems like someone’s visiting," Aryan thought, placing his kit bag by the door.

"Aryan dear, come here," Priya called out.

Aryan, who had one foot on the stairs ready to bolt to his room, came back to the living room to find someone else seated on the sofa alongside his mother.

His guess had been correct. Aryan stood there looking at the woman in front of him. She was dressed in a sharp business suit, typing away on a Blackberry phone before looking up.

"Aryan, this is my college friend, Meera," Priya said while guiding her hands towards Meera.

"Nice to meet you Aryan, I’ve heard a lot about you," Meera said with a genuine, calculating smile on her face.

"Nice to meet you too, Miss Meera," Aryan said while nodding respectfully.

"Oh, just Meera will be fine," she said, not taking her eyes off Aryan, assessing him like a scout assessing a pitch.

Priya rolled her eyes playfully before breaking the silence. "Aryan, you see, Meera here is a Sports Management Agent working with Globosport, and she asked to see you after I told her about you. Coincidentally, she had planned to contact a player who had caught her eye during the Vinoo Mankad final, and once again coincidently, it was you."

Aryan put his bag down completely and sat on the adjacent armchair while nodding his head.

"Now, since I’m no expert in contracts, I will leave you two to talk while I check on the dinner," Priya said as she stood up to go to the kitchen.

After Priya left, Meera turned her full attention towards Aryan, and both individuals had a stare-down for a few seconds.

Meera finally smiled before speaking.

"Hello once again, Aryan. As your mother said, I’m Meera Kapoor, and I’m a senior agent. I’ll be direct. I asked to see you in hopes that we could partner up. I’d like to be your agent and represent you in all future deals, endorsements, and MCA negotiations," Meera said while taking out a stack of papers from her leather briefcase.

She took a few papers from the stack before passing them to Aryan. She then continued.

"I have scouted a lot of players for my agency, but usually, the big stars go to the established male agents. I want to build my own portfolio with a generational talent."

"As I said, I would like to represent you. The papers I gave you are my proposal."

"It covers three main things: Contract negotiations with the Mumbai Cricket Association (and potentially the IPL next year), Brand Management to grow your image, and Legal protection.".

Aryan kept nodding at Meera while she explained her proposal. While scanning the terms, Aryan was a bit surprised since the contract seemed to favor him heavily.

For example, there was a clause stating that Meera would negotiate the first senior contract for free, and only from then on would she take a standard commission (10-15%) on endorsements.

"I know I’m your friend’s child, but isn’t your commission a bit low for a start?" Aryan asked. He had read a bit about sports management in his previous life and knew agents were usually sharks.

"I know that it may seem small now, but in the near future, it could be crores," Meera said, leaning forward.

"If you play in the Ranji Trophy and the Vijay Hazare like you did in the U19s—and that switch hit you showed against Delhi—it wouldn’t be long before the IPL franchises line up for you with blank cheques. The IPL is going to change cricket, Aryan. And you are the perfect prototype for it."

"You even had a few corporate teams interested in you, but they were shut off by the MCA who made the decision to lock you in," Meera said while looking at Aryan.

"Well, I like everything I’ve heard so far, but I’d like you to take some commission for your first negotiation if you become my agent. I feel a bit bad about free labor," Aryan said.

Meera didn’t act pretentious and instantly accepted to take a small percentage for negotiating Aryan’s upcoming MCA Grade C contract.

"So from your words, I’m assuming you’re okay with everything?" Meera asked.

"Well, the Association offered me a contract today, and I needed an agent to help me with the fine print."

"Plus, it’s better to have someone close, like my mother’s friend, do it than a stranger from a big agency," Aryan said.

Meera bumped her fist in the air excitedly before seeing Aryan staring at her. She quickly regained her composure before clearing her throat.

"This was just a proposal, so the final representation contract isn’t here."

"It would be ready by tomorrow though since all I have to do is just change a few things, and we’re good to go," Meera said.

She stood up and gathered her materials before both she and Aryan walked to the door.

"Won’t you wait for dinner?" Priya said when she saw Meera and Aryan at the door. She had been listening in on the conversation to see to it that her son hadn’t been roped into something hazardous.

"Nah Priya, I need to prep stuff for the filing."

"I’ll be here tomorrow though, so let’s have dinner then," she said while giving Aryan a nod before opening the door.

"Did you like her?" Priya asked as she wiped her hands on her apron.

"Yeah, she’s very sharp, and the contract favored me. She seems to really believe that I can be something great," Aryan said with a grin.

Priya looked at her son with pride before heading back to complete dinner.

The following day arrived, and Aryan signed the representation contract with Meera. Meera had decided to focus heavily on Aryan as her marquee client.

"Let’s forge a great partnership together," Meera said while she brought forth her hand for a shake.

Aryan looked at her hand and took it in his. Meera, as she promised, stayed for dinner afterwards before heading home.

Two Days Later

The next day passed quickly, and soon it was the time for the big match day. Aryan had luckily been selected as part of the matchday squad again for the Vijay Hazare Trophy (One Day format).

The match was against Karnataka, one of the giants of domestic cricket. All the odds were against Mumbai. They had lost the previous encounter in the league stage badly.

Aryan told his mother about the match, but she couldn’t attend this time since her mother (Aryan’s grandmother) had a medical checkup, and she couldn’t take Riya.

Aryan was a bit down as always whenever his mum couldn’t be there for his match.

Aryan didn’t sulk for long and continued with the preparations towards the match.

He had drunk a Recovery Elixir and had made his best efforts to sleep but couldn’t because of the excitement for the match the following day.

Aryan finally conceded as his eyes were getting heavier and he slept.

The match was being played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. It was a short flight, so the team had taken the morning flight to prevent fatigue.

Aryan sat on the plane beside a very uncommon seatmate. It was the Mumbai Captain, Wasim Jaffer.

"Hello Aryan, I assume this is the first time we are talking properly outside the nets, but I’m Wasim," the domestic legend said humbly.

"Yeah, sorry... I mean, who doesn’t know you, Bhaiya," Aryan said, a bit nervous.

Jaffer, who saw this, laughed a bit.

"Yeah, yeah. You know I watched your U19 final highlights, and you’re a really good player. With you in the lower order, at the very least, we won’t have trouble accelerating in the death overs from what I’ve seen," Jaffer said.

"All you have to do is translate your play onto a senior match and do your very best. Also, don’t slack off on fitness training, and you will become an integral part of our side."

Jaffer added, to which Aryan nodded vigorously.

The two talked for a while about batting techniques before Aryan closed his eyes to take a nap.

The plane landed, and the team took their bus to the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

The entrance was full of Karnataka fans who had come to support their team. Bangalore crowds were known to be knowledgeable and passionate.

The fans were simply amazing as they stood on the sides with flags and drums while donning the Karnataka colors (Red and Yellow).

The Mumbai players headed onto the pitch for a warm-up session before the match.

Aryan was again amazed by the atmosphere. For him, this was holy ground. This was where RCB played.

The shouts of the Karnataka fans drowned everything, even the noise of the small Mumbai contingent.

Aryan had a good warm-up session before the team headed to the dressing room to change into their colored clothing.

Aryan, after taking his water bottle and energy bar, headed to the dugout. He was named the Super Sub again.

The match soon started. Karnataka won the toss and elected to Bat.

It was in favor of the Karnataka team as they attacked rampantly. Robin Uthappa, the Karnataka opener, was in destructive form.

The Mumbai team, however, were also relentless with their fielding and snuffed out boundaries.

A few chances came for both teams with neither capitalizing on the wickets.

Mumbai came close to a breakthrough in the 15th over when a catch was induced by Dhawal Kulkarni off Uthappa’s bat.

The chance was, however, dropped by the slip fielder.

The onslaught continued until Karnataka finally found the rhythm.

A wonderful drive by their captain, Vinay Kumar (promoted up the order or a top-order bat), was met with a mistimed fielding effort by Abhishek Nayar.

The Mumbai players tried to argue with the umpire that the ball had been stopped before the rope.

The umpire therefore decided to seek confirmation from the Third Umpire, and the result came back as a Boundary.

The Mumbai players, knowing they couldn’t argue anymore, accepted it.

Robin Uthappa, who had been causing trouble for the Mumbai side all match, stepped up the aggression.

He smashed a massive six over long-on.

The home fans erupted into shouts and cheers as their club had just crossed the 200-run mark in the 35th over.

Aryan sat on the bench feeling anxious.

The first innings ended with Karnataka posting a massive total of 310/6 in 50 Overs.

The umpire blew the whistle to end the first innings.

The Mumbai players headed into the break a bit downcast.

Coach Praveen Amre made his pep talk, and the players returned to the pitch for the chase.

Aryan was itching to go out and bat, and his eagerness could be seen by both the Coach and his assistants.

Mumbai started the chase well but lost wickets at regular intervals. Wasim Jaffer scored a fifty but got out. Rohit Sharma looked good for 40 but threw his wicket away.

By the 35th over, Mumbai was 180/5. They needed 131 runs in 15 overs (Run rate approx 8.7).

Mumbai made a tactical change. They activated the Super Sub.

Aryan was feeling a bit restless, but his chance came when Coach Kulkarni told him to warm up in the 36th over.

Aryan quickly wore his helmet and headed to the touchline to warm up.

The Mumbai players got a chance to pull one back, but Aditya Tare squandered a free hit by hitting it straight to the fielder.

A wicket fell in the 38th over. Abhishek Nayar was out.

The umpire signaled for the new batsman. Aryan stood on the touchline.

[COMMENTATOR POV]

’Okay folks, Mumbai is making a change, and they are bringing on the "Wonderkid" Aryan Sharma. He broke a number of records on his debut against Delhi.

He would look to prove himself to the Coach and the fans that the last time wasn’t a fluke.’

Aryan walked to the crease. Mumbai needed 110 runs off 72 balls.

Aryan quickly settled into the game after coming on, rotating strike and finding gaps.

Aryan, making use of his [Spatial Awareness] (Vision) and [Gap Piercer] trait, snuffed out the opposition’s field placements.

Coach Amre had given Aryan a license to kill—a free role to attack.

A few minutes later, Aryan got a short ball on the leg stump. Looking ahead, he swiveled and pulled it towards the fine leg boundary.

The ball raced away.

.........

[M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore]

[Vijay Hazare Trophy - League Stage]

[40th Over of Mumbai’s Chase]

The humid Bangalore air hung heavy over the stadium. The giant floodlights were taking full effect as the evening set in.

"Huh, I don’t want us to lose this match, but it is Karnataka at home, so I’m not expecting much," a Mumbai fan, wearing a faded blue jersey, said, wiping sweat from his forehead.

"We’re past our glory days of the 90s. We used to be the undisputed kings of domestic cricket, but now sigh, with Delhi and Karnataka rising, we are struggling to even qualify for the knockouts comfortably," another Mumbai fan lamented.

[PA Announcer]

’Mumbai playing their Super Sub card. Number 22, Aryan Sharma comes on for the bowler Avishkar Salvi, and Number 17, Aditya Tare comes on for Abhishek Nayar (Tactical retirement/Injury).’

"I always told you guys, but I’m gonna say it again. What the hell is wrong with Coach Amre? We need 90 runs in 10 overs against Anil Kumble and Vinay Kumar, and he’s sending in some unknown kids?"

"Relax, that’s Tare. He played last season and actually did good. The other one... seems like it’s some kid."

Suddenly, a college student sitting beside them raised his voice, adjusting his glasses. "Wait, I know him! He was the kid who hit that winning six against Delhi on his debut. He was actually insane in that match, so let’s see."

"He was the one who finished the game against Delhi? He looks like a Bollywood actor. Bet he’s soft," a Karnataka fan, draped in the red and yellow state flag, sneered.

"You don’t always have to be stereotypical about such things. Look at Mahendra Singh Dhoni. He was a ticket collector with long hair, and now he’s the World T20 Champion captain. Does cricket have anything to do with looks or background?" a sharp female voice cut through the noise.

The Karnataka fan, who had been shut up, looked at the woman with an annoyed face.

"Shouldn’t you be watching serials at home right now?" he threw a jab again at the woman.

"Shouldn’t you have some sense, you prehistoric ape?" another female voice said from behind.

"Don’t encourage him, Tara," the first female voice said.

"But he’s annoying, Meera Di. You shouldn’t let them have the last say in these instances," Tara said.

"Well, that’s not the reason we came, right? The reason why we came has just entered the pitch, so let’s watch him," Meera said, adjusting her sunglasses.

Meera had flown to Bangalore the day before. As Aryan’s newly appointed agent, she had decided to watch the match against Karnataka after she found out that Aryan would be the designated Super Sub.

Her younger sister, Tara, had tagged along as she was intrigued by the player who her sister had supposedly signed a major representation contract with—a 15-year-old who was already the talk of the town.

"Oh, he’s taking the strike," Meera said, prompting Tara to look at the field.

[The World Context: 2007 Parallel Earth]

As Aryan walked to the crease, he looked around the massive Chinnaswamy Stadium. In this world, the timeline was similar but amplified. India wasn’t just a growing economy; it was the Second Largest Economy in the world, having overtaken Japan and Germany years ago, rivaling the USA.

The economic boom had fueled a sporting revolution. But unlike his previous world where football (soccer) was the global religion, here, Cricket was the undisputed king.

The ICC Cricket World Cup was the most-watched event on the planet, surpassing the FIFA World Cup and the Olympics. Nations like Brazil, Germany, and Nigeria played high-level cricket. The Indian Premier League (IPL), scheduled to launch next year, was projected to be bigger than the NFL and the English Premier League combined.

To be a cricketer in India in 2007 was to be a God. And Aryan, a reincarnated soul from a world where he was just a fan named Raghav, was now standing in the coliseum.

(To be Continued)