The time just flew by, and then the under-19 World Cup had started. I wanted to miss no matches of India, but my practice sessions clashed with the match timings a bit too much for my liking. Today was a rest day and everybody was going out for some reason; they had invited me also, but no, there was no way I was missing the match today, so I declined the offer.
The match started, and the captains went for the toss. India won the toss (thank God), and we chose to ball first. The match was against Nepal. It was a very slow match. And I am no one to judge, but Nepal did not play well. I mean, they played the entire 48 overs and still managed just 169 runs. I think maybe our balling unit was a bit too good. They gave up eight wickets, and the first inning ended with 169/8.
I thought of calling Ishan or Rishab in the innings break, but then they might be very busy right now. So, I decided to call them after the match. The innings started, and I was feeling like being there on the field instead of being in the comfort of my room, with the amount of sweat dripping from my forehead right now. The openers, Ishan Kishan and Rishab Pant, came on the field. And the match started.
Ishan was at the non-striker's end right now, and Rishab was playing like it was the last game of his life. The 1st over went by with 2 sixes and 2 fours with 2 no balls, all by Rishab Pant. Rishab went beast mode against Nepal, oh my god. 78 runs in 24 balls with a strike rate of 325. Fucking hell.
While Ishan did not play as well as Rishab, he did not play badly either. Ishan scored his good 52 runs before he got out. Rishab was clean-bowled while it was a catchout for Ishan. The openers played most of the match. Leaving the rest on the shoulders of the other teammates.
We won by 175/3 in 18 overs. And that was a very amazing feat. Rishab was obviously the man of the match because who else would it be after he played like that?
I was going downstairs to find something to eat when my phone rang. It was Ishan. And I froze again. Why the fuck do I freeze like that every single time? After a good five rings, I came back to my senses and picked up the call. "Hello." "Hi Shubman, did you watch the match?" he said in that excited tone of his. "Yes, yes, I did," I replied. "See Rishab; he did watch it. Come on; now buy me that ice cream." "Stop lying, give that to me." I think Rishabh just grabbed the phone from Ishan. Leaving a whining Ishan in the background.
"Did you watch the match?" "Yes, I did; you played amazing." Rishabh chuckled from the other end. "But you watched the match for Ishan, didn't you?" I have no idea why he would say that because first it was a cricket match, and I would watch it even if none of my friends were playing, and secondly, both of them were from the same team, so what made him think that I watched the match just for Ishan? "I watched it for both of you; what do you mean?" "But you told just him that you are going to watch the match today and not me." Oh, so this was the drama about, "I did not tell anyone that I would watch the match today. Ask Ishan."
"Ishaaaaan, he is saying he did not tell you that he will be watching the match today, so how the fuck did you know?" Well, I wanted to ask the exact same question. How did he know? "Well, he obviously didn't tell me that; he just said that today was his rest day, so yeah, I just knew that he would be watching the match."
And that sentence managed to melt something in me. He was so sure that I would watch the match instead of going out with friends or just simply sleeping in. "What if he did not watch it?" It was rishabh. He liked to ruin perfectly fine moments quite a lot.
"Well, I did watch it, so Ishan still won," I said and was met with complete silence from the other side. For a moment I thought that maybe the call got declined somehow, but no, they were both on the call still. "Yeah, I won." It was Ishan, and he said it in the softest voice possible. As if he were talking to a toddler. And I wanted to say something more, but I got tongue-tied. Again.
I did not talk to either of them for a week or two after that call. Partially because I got so busy in the practice that I barely had time to even breathe properly. And partially because they got so busy with the World Cup. And soon it was time for the semifinals.
I wanted to watch that match in the stadium but couldn't because it was not in India. It was India vs. the West Indies. A strong team with strong players. I hoped that India won because obviously I am an Indian but also because I wanted Ishan to get India a gold under his captaincy.
Tomorrow was the match, and I decided to call them to wish them luck, but before I could dial either of their numbers, I got a call from Ishan instead. And this has happened so many times now that it feels like fate. We somehow always decide to call each other at the exact same time.
"Hellllooooo shubmann," it was rishab. Did he call me? "Helloo Rishab Bhai, why are you calling from Ishan's number?" "Are you disappointed that it is me and not Ishan?" "Well, obviously not; I was just about to call to congratulate you both and wish you luck for tomorrow." "Then were you going to call Ishan or me specifically?" His tone was teasing for some reason.
"How does that matter?" "It doesn't matter, Shubi, he has gone mad out of happiness." It was Ishan. And oh god, did he just call me Shubi? "Ohhhhhhhh, Ishan, are we on the nickname basis now?" It was Rishabh again. Why was that person so damn annoying? "Rishabh, are you drunk?" "Yeah, he sounds very drunk," I said. "Nope, I am not. I am just happy to be playing the finals tomorrow." "Go away stupid bitch." "Ooohhhhh, do you want to talk to Shubman privately? Okay, I will go away then, hehehe." And I heard something that sounded like a door shutting.
"Has he gone stupid?" I asked. "Well, he was always stupid, wasn't he?" Ishan said with laughter. "True, that is." "Were you sleeping? Did I disturb you?" "Nope, definitely not; I told you I was just about to call. But before I could, I got your call instead." "It sounds like fate, doesn't it?" "Yeah, well, if you call being free at the same time fate, then sure, be happy, I guess." And that managed to get laughter out of Ishan. I sensed he was tensed, very much so.
"It's okay, you are going to play amazing tomorrow, don't worry." "Do I sound that nervous?" Ishan asked with a chuckle. "Yeah, you sound like you are 2 seconds away from fainting out of nerves." "God, that would be so embarrassing." "Much less embarrassing than fainting in front of your senior, who was also your captain, for no goddamn reason."
And now Ishan was laughing his head off. "It is okay, Shubman, everybody panics when they see a person as handsome as me." "Well, maybe I panicked because I had never seen a person as stupid as you are." "Sure, tell yourself that. If that is what helps you sleep at night, then sure." It was this playful banter that I loved the most in our conversations.
"Did you enjoy your private talk, Shubman?" It was Rishabh again. That fuckhead needs a slap. "Yeah, I was very much enjoying the peace before you decided to walk in and ruin it." "Ohhhh, you feel at peace talking to Ishan. Niceeeeee." And Ishan was laughing so hard at the other end that it sounded like he would need CPR in the next 5 minutes. We talked for almost half an hour before I wished both of them luck for tomorrow and decided to sleep myself.
The next day everyone was in front of the TV watching the final match of the World Cup. All of us secretly wishing for our seniors to win. The match started with the toss, which India lost. The West Indies chose to ball first. God, that was awful, but it's okay. Let's not lose hope.
Rishabh and Ishan came on the field ready to bat. And Rishabh scored a run on the first ball. There were 3 back-to-back dot balls. Then Ishan scored a run. The next ball was a dot ball again. On the first ball of the next over, Rishab was stumped out. And then started the downfall.
Ishan was out with an LBW after scoring just 4 runs, and the rest of the team couldn't do much either. India played 45 overs before all of our wickets were gone. We made a score of 145 runs in 45 overs all out.
Our bowlers were actually really good today. The West Indies were not getting the easy way out of this match at all. Well, this match turned out to not be as one-sided as it had looked before, but we still lost. West Indies managed to score 146/5 in 49.3 overs. Even if we had lost, it was a good match. A good fight.
Ishan didn't look too well after the match; he had just lost his first big tournament after all. I wanted to call him and console him, but I knew there was nothing I could do or say that would make Ishan forget the loss.
The disappointment was evident on everybody's faces, but the coach asked us all to join him for ice cream to uplift the mood. And surprisingly, it actually worked. Team India under Ishan's captaincy had won us a silver medal with a strong fight for the gold; it was already a great achievement.
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when 77 met 32 [ishman ff] [shubish]
FanfictionShubman and Ishan met in the under 19 camp which was the start of their friendship. Years later shubman was left alone reminiscing their memories. There was something more than just ishan wanting to quit cricket and although it had nothing to do wit...