Chapter 32: The Semi-final Day Match [5]
[Score: 45/2. Gourav: 11*, Ajit: 0*]
Vikram's bat clattered against the bench leg. He sat down hard, burying his face in his hands.
The brief, heroic high of his boundaries had evaporated, leaving the bitter taste of a foolish, emotional mistake.
On the field, Ajit, the new number four, was just arriving at the crease.
Raghav, on the sideline, watched him with an analyst's cold eye. He could show Ajit's fear. It was in the way he adjusted his thigh pad. The way he tapped the crease, tap-tap-tap, a nervous, rabbit-heart rhythm.
He looked up, his eyes wide, taking in the vast, silent stadium and the Spring Dale fielders, who were now buzzing like sharks that had tasted blood.
Rohan Sharma, back behind the stumps, was no longer the frustrated, out-thought captain. He was back in control. The frantic energy was gone, replaced by a cold, patient focus. He had his opening.
