Virat Kohlateral Damage!! #A2ZChallenge

Summer of 2013

Suvin stuck the toothbrush in his mouth, foam covering his lower lips and the Times of India sports page open in front of him. Suvin had this unique habit of jumping to the sports section of newspaper. He stood in the balcony every day, reading and brushing until Mr Patel walked past our balcony with Naughty, his Labrador Retriever.  “Good Morning Suvin Sir, Cheeku appointed RCB captain this year. Aapke Uttam Nagar walo ko Majestic Bus Stand hi kyon pasand aaya?”, quizzed Patel. Suvin helplessly grunted but didn’t utter a word. Not because his mouth was full of toothpaste froth. He sensed me standing beside him. Finally he came out of bathroom holding a towel in his hand, flashing a smile of acquitted convict! Sensing I was about to give him a mouthful, he said, “Do you know toothpaste is a very potent and spot on pregnancy test?”. I didn’t know whether it was pre-emptive bail or a general trivia. “Aunty, Bhindi banegi kya?, yelled my cook from kitchen. By the time I made my re-entry in drawing room, Suvin had escaped.

I loved cricket. I remember growing up watching Kapil Dev, Sunil Gavaskar. T-20 was newest form of cricket, a shorter version! More entertaining and full of explosive batting. Pepsi IPL is the talk of the town. India’s biggest festival. Or biggest time waste.

While I sat watching my afternoon affair with mindless TV serials, Suvin’s whatsapp message distracted me. ‘Tomorrow, RCB vs DD at Ferozshah Kotla! You & I!’ My cousin’s brother worked as marketing head for Pepsi Atom and Suvin has been pursuing him for match passes. Seems he finally gave up. Watching a cricket match with him at the stadium and feel the Euphoria was one more thing on the bucket list.

Match Day 10th May 2013

We occupied seats close enough from mid-wicket boundary. Close enough to see players as big as my palm. Delhi wore blue and RCB donned red and golden. While this was Delhi home ground, people cheered more for Virat. I found Virat very arrogant and outlandish. Sadly, BCCI does not care for view of a grumpy old lady. Gayle fell quickly and the ground exploded as Kohli entered on pitch. The stadium was complete pandemonium. Frankly, we had gone to see lot of boundaries and sixes. & our boy. Did he disappoint? Not a cent. He hammered from the word go. Every time he whacked the ball, the entire stadium erupted. With every Hit I was screaming and clapping as loud as possible. By the time, RCB were half way through their batting inning, My voice was sounding more of Altaf Raja and Suvin had changed his loyalties from Delhi Daredevils. Men are so predictive, aren’t they? Kohli kept his murderous avatar on until last ball of inning. The gigantic screen flashed Kohlateral Damage but sadly, he missed his century by one run.

iplT20.com

RCB pulled off the match by narrow margin. 2 or 3 runs if I remember well. We drove into our apartments by 2:30 midnight.

As Suvin lay on bed, he stared at the ceiling fan. I fixed the mobile phone to charging socket and turned around. Without looking in my direction, chewing on his Nicorette, Suvin said, “This boy will go far. He will surpass all Tendulkar records.” I giggled at my Paul, the fortune telling octopus.

He got up to spit the gum, handed over my medicines and water to me. I snuggled inside the comforter, In his arms. Random thoughts were crowding my mind was the over excited girl next to Suvin in stands was too touchy, am I too possessive, maid’s number was still switched off, will she come in the morning. Ketki has an interview tomorrow and so many that I didn’t realize when did I roll over in sleep.

This blog of part of #A2Z Challenge, there will be 26 blogs in this series all the blogs are in continuation. I am writing them from Z to A, as the story also flows from Death towards beginning of life. Hope you enjoy knowing Antara’s journey.

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