The GOAT of Cricket

**M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru — May 2016**

The air in Bangalore had never felt so thick — thick with anticipation, with legacy, with a billion hopes resting like invisible weight on 22 players. The Royal Challengers Bangalore were in the IPL 2016 Final. And the crowd? It wasn't just roaring — it was thundering like gods had descended to watch.

Flags waved like flames. Drums boomed. Flares lit up the twilight. Bengaluru wasn't just hosting a final — it was living one.

---

### Finalists:

* **Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)**

* **Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)**

### RCB Final XI:

Gayle, Kohli (C), AB de Villiers, Ishaan Verma, Kedar Jadhav (WK), Shane Watson, Sarfaraz Khan, Stuart Binny, Yuzvendra Chahal, Sreenath Aravind, Adam Milne

### SRH Final XI:

Warner (C), Dhawan, Williamson, Yuvraj, Henriques, Naman Ojha (WK), Hooda, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sran, Mustafizur Rahman, Ben Cutting

---

### The Toss

**Toss Moment**

"Heads," said Kohli.

*Tails.*

Kohli's eyes flared with satisfaction. "We'll bowl first," he said without a second's hesitation.

On the stump mic, Warner muttered, "Let's put runs. Pressure game."

**Commentary Box — Harsha Bhogle:**

> "Virat backs his boys to chase, as they've done all season. But can they do it when it matters most?"

---

### First Innings: SRH Batting

**Opening Over:**

Aravind to Warner. First ball — short and wide. CRACK! Warner cuts fiercely. Four.

**Crowd:**

Roar turns into uneasy murmurs. Warner was locked in.

**6th Over:**

SRH 61/0. Powerplay done.

Kohli throws the ball to Chahal.

Chahal to Dhawan. Dhawan charges... beaten in flight — **STUMPED!**

**Stump Mic — Dhoni-style chirp from Jadhav:**

> "Bhai, poora photo kheench ke gaya tha!" *("Brother, he went for a photoshoot!")*

Next over — Watson to Williamson. *Off-stump cartwheeling!* Bowled. Kohli pumps his fist.

But Warner? Warner played like a man on fire. Inside-outs over cover, one-handed swipes over midwicket, and a reverse lap that left the commentators speechless.

**Commentary — Sunil Gavaskar:**

> "He's rewriting the T20 batting manual here."

Ishaan saved three boundaries with full-length dives — one near the rope where he crashed into the hoardings, the crowd chanting: **"Verma! Verma!"**

SRH ended at **191/6**. Warner — 83 (48).

---

### Second Innings: RCB Chase

Gayle started strong. Two sixes in the first over off Sran.

Then — bang! Top edge. Caught. Gayle gone for 22.

AB walks in. The heart of the middle.

**9th Over:**

Kohli on 45. Bhuvneshwar runs in. **Bowled!** Kohli chopped on. Silence. Kohli punches his bat in anger.

Score: 89/2.

In walks **Ishaan Verma**.

---

### Ishaan's Innings: The Knock of Destiny

**Ball 1:** Henriques — length. Ishaan leans in. **CRACK!** Four through cover.

**Ball 2:** Dot. Calm.

**Ball 3:** Flicked to square leg. Single.

AB walks up: "It's a final. Not a fairytale. Build first."

Ishaan nods.

Then begins the build:

* A gorgeous paddle sweep off Mustafizur.

* A punch through extra cover.

* A cheeky reverse sweep for four off Hooda.

**Stump Mic — Bhuvi to Warner:**

> "Ye bachcha toh Kohli ka photocopy lagta hai." *("This kid's a Kohli clone.")*

**16th Over:**

RCB 144/3. 48 needed from 24.

Cutting bowls. AB tries a lofted flick — **Caught!**

Now Ishaan must finish.

**18th Over:**

He targets Mustafizur —

* Ball 1: Over long-on — **SIX!**

* Ball 2: Slashed over point — **FOUR!**

* Ball 3: Dot.

Jadhav falls next over. Binny joins.

---

### Final Over: 11 runs needed. Mustafizur to bowl.

* **Ball 1:** Full toss. **Whipped for FOUR.**

* **Ball 2:** Yorker. Dug out. **Single.**

* **Ball 3:** Binny swings — **misses.**

* **Ball 4:** Short. Pulled! **FOUR!**

* **Ball 5:** Dot. 2 needed off last ball.

**Last Ball:**

Stadium holds breath.

Mustafizur bowls. Slow off-cutter. Ishaan steps across...

**He scoops!**

**Over fine leg!**

**SIX!**

**RCB WIN THE IPL 2016!**

---

### Pandemonium

Kohli charges onto the field.

AB lifts Ishaan.

Gayle breakdances.

**Crowd:** *"RCB! RCB! RCB!"*

Ishaan sinks to his knees. Looks up. Whispers: "We did it, Dada. We did it."

---

### Post-match Ceremony

"Man of the Match: Ishaan Verma, 56\* off 28."

**Presenter:**

> "Ishaan, you just hit the winning runs in an IPL final. What's going through your head?"

**Ishaan:**

> "This isn't just a win for RCB or the fans. It's for a man watching me from above. Dada, this one's for you."

---

### The Trophy Moment

Under the floodlights, with red confetti falling like cherry blossoms in a monsoon, the RCB team gathered on the presentation stage.

Virat Kohli, flanked by AB de Villiers and Gayle, called Ishaan to the front.

"Come on, champ. You're lifting it with us," Kohli said.

The three of them — Kohli, AB, and Ishaan — gripped the silver IPL trophy together.

**Presenter:**

> "Ladies and gentlemen, your IPL 2016 Champions — Royal Challengers Bangalore!"

As the trophy was lifted, fireworks lit up the sky. The Chinnaswamy shook with joy.

And in that moment, the boy from Shivaji Park became a legend.

---

**Diary Entry that Night:**

> *IPL Champion. Final hero. Trophy in hand. But I'm still just that boy from Mumbai — chasing leather, chasing dreams. The road doesn't end here. It begins.*

(Note: I just finished writing the 50th chapter of the story so I'll upload one more chapter shortly afterward.)