The GOAT of Cricket

*April 20, 2017 | Bangalore*

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**Scene 1: A Decision in Silence**

The RCB team hotel buzzed with noise. The PR team moved like choreographed chaos, handing out schedules, printouts, press passes. There was a branding event lined up at UB City Mall: luxury watches, endorsements, questions about Emma, lifestyle spreads.

Ishaan stood by his window, looking down at Bangalore's morning haze. His phone buzzed. Reminder: *Brand Appearance, 11:30 AM.*

He stared at it.

Then slipped the phone in his bag, picked up his bat, and quietly walked out.

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**Scene 2: The Old Turf**

The auto rickshaw rumbled into a lane shaded by gulmohars. At the end stood a modest gate that read:

**"National Cricket Foundation – Junior Nets."**

The coach, an old man in a floppy hat named Ramesh sir, blinked twice.

"Verma? THE Verma? You sure you're not lost?"

Ishaan grinned. "I used to sneak under that fence, remember?"

Kids turned, whispers ignited.

"Is that...

"Bhaiya it's HIM!"

He waved.

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**Scene 3: The Drill and the Dialogue**

Ishaan picked up a tennis ball.

"Alright, who here wants to face the bouncer today?"

The nets erupted. Laughter. Raised hands.

He bowled. Fielded. Corrected grips. Gave high-fives. Told stories.

One boy, scrawny, 14 maybe, came forward quietly.

"Sir... they say I can't play professionally. I'm too short."

Ishaan squatted to his eye level.

"Height doesn't matter. Grit does. Look them in the eye. And don't blink."

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**Scene 4: A Quiet Balcony Call**

That night, Ishaan sat on the academy's rooftop balcony, hair sweaty, arms sore.

His phone buzzed. A name flashed: **MS Dhoni.**

He picked up.

MS: "Skipped the PR event, didn't you?"

Ishaan: "How did you know?"

MS chuckled.

"Cameras follow you, kid. You can't vanish anymore. But what you did... was worth it."

Pause.

"You're leading people without knowing it. That's real captaincy."

Ishaan was silent.

MS continued:

"Just remember: when they build your statue one day, make sure your feet still touch the ground."

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**Scene 5: The Wall of Chalk**

As he was leaving, the coach took him to a corridor with fading bricks.

Children had scribbled names, hopes, and doodles in chalk over years.

In the far corner, under a rusty tin shade, a tiny, fading scribble read:

**"Ishaan V – India one day."**

Ishaan stared.

**Inner Monologue:**

> *From here to there, and back again. The dream never changed. Only the view did.*

He picked up a chalk. Below it, he wrote:

**"Still dreaming. Still learning."**

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**Scene 6: The Return to Lights**

That night, the stadium lights glowed for the next RCB match warm-up.

As Ishaan jogged onto the field, Kohli approached.

"Heard you skipped out. Corporate's mad."

Ishaan smiled.

"The kid inside needed a net session."

Kohli nodded, quietly approving.

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