Next morning 🌅
Rohit wakes up.... feeling a bit anxious, the pressure of the first training session begins to creep back in...
Rohit : (to himself) kuch nhi rohit tu kar lega....jammy bhai ne bola tha na k...play your game....(While heads down to the practice ground)
Practice ground
Saab already ground pe the aur aapne aapne practice kar rahe the....rohit arrives...woh dekhna hai kuch familiar faces from last night - Mahi bhai, Yuvi pa, Sachin pa and Jammy bhai...but now, there's an intensity in the air... The smiles and jokes replaced with focused determination....rohit quickly realizes that the vibe is different....much more serious
Rohit : (to himself, nervously) okay... bohot ho gaya...aab focus karne ka time aa gaya hai...
Rohit walks towards the field...he catches the sight of Gautam Gambhir...the vice-captain, already hard at work in the nets..
Gautam, known for his no-nonsense attitude, is pacing around, giving sharp instructions to some players...he looks up and catches rohit's eye, his expression unreadable....
Gautam : (strictly) you're late, rohit.
Rohit : (frowning, checking his watch) late ? Mujhe laga i was on time...
Gautam : (cutting him off) Here, you're early or you're late....no in-between....aab ready ho jao.....hamare pass excuses ke liye time nhi hai
Rohit feels a wave of panic rush over his as gautam walks away.. leaving him standing there ....the light -heartedness of last night feels like a distant memory now ....rohit quickly makes his way to the nets to join the others...He notices the serious, focused expressions on everyone's faves ....no banter...no jokes - just work
As he approaches the training nets, he spots harbhajan singh... known as bhajju pa, warming up nearby....Rohit hesitates for a moment before greeting him
Rohit : (nervously) morning...sir !
Harbhajan : (without looking up l, focused on stretching) morning, ready for some spin ?!
Rohit : (nodding, unsure of what to expect) yeah...i think so
Harbhajan : (seriously) you better be...tum itne aasani se nhi bacho ge waha...
Rohit gulps... realising that last night's camaraderie doesn't translate to training....he takes a deep breath and begins to warm up, glancing over at the rest of the team...
Rohit pov -
Even yuvi pa, who had been the joker last night, is completely serious... focused on his batting drills...Mahi bhai, the calm captain, is giving instructions to the support staff, his tone is different from last night...
Mahi : (firmly,to the group) alright, aabhi hamare pass time bohot kaam bacha hai...like aaj 11 sep hai 13th ko pehla match hai (while glancing at rohit)...we need to get through the drills quickly....Rohit, tum ready raho..net mein nxt tum aaoge
Rohit picks up his bat and moves to the nets... feeling the weight of the team's eyes on him...
Rohit : (to himself, gripping his bat) (remembering someone's words) just be yourself... play your game
Rohit steps into the nets, and the bowlers immediately start coming at him hard... Harbhajan spins a few tricky deliveries, testing Rohit's footwork...
The first few balls are fine, but as the intensity picks up...rohit struggles to keep up...a few balls fly past him...and the pressure starts to build...he can feel the eyes of mahi bhai...yuvi pa....and gautam and every teammate on him
