I played
street cricket for a while today. I first observed and then I asked if I could
participate. Could I play?
I was
welcomed.
I was taken
in.
The children with
whom I played with were no more than twelve old. Some were much younger. They
wore no shoes. Such items are often a luxury in the slums of Bombay that few
can afford. The children were many and the ground was hard. It was uneven. The
wickets were sticks planted in the hard dirt. The sticks were fragile. The bat
was beaten and so was the ball. Not the cricketers.
They were
ALIVE.
They wanted to
PLAY.
We contrasted
we cricketers. Here I was - a tall, white and well-fed guy amongst the small,
brown and skinny kids. I was thrown the ball. It was baptism of fire. An
instant test. I opted for fast. An opening ball of fire and bounce.
I was Dennis
Lillee.
From the top
of my run I could see Rajesh. He was the opening batsman. He looked serious. He
was CONFIDENT. For that moment he was SACHIN TENDULKAR.
My ball
pitched a little outside the off stump. It was somewhat short of a good length.
Rajesh neatly stepped inside the line and clipped the ball hard. He guided the
ball away - on the off side. For four! The crowd erupted.
I glared at
the batsman.
He slipped me
a wry smile.
My second ball
was all guile. I was a leg spinner. I was THE leg spinner.
I was Shane
Warne.
I flipped the
ball from hand to hand in my crease, waiting for the batsman to ready himself.
I tried to stare him down. I realized then that he was a formidable opponent. This
kid was all business. He was in the
moment. I didn't have a chance.
He was still
Sachin.
He was still
TENDULKAR.
I threw the
ball up. I gave it arc. I gave it air. Rajesh took a step down the pitch.
He was on the front foot. He hit the ball full face. I heard the thwack.
The ball sailed high above my head way beyond all who were fielding.
It was a
six.
There
was no question about it.
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