TRUST YOU ALWAYS ✔

Part 10

The squad for the SA series was declared and Mahi was back in the team. The whole team had worked hard enough to make Mahi forget the dreadful incident, making him feel loved and important. After all he was the most important person to almost everyone. 

The 3 match ODI series had been levelled 1-1 and it was the series decider match today. South Africa won the toss and elected to bat first. They put up huge score of 324-5 making it pretty difficult for chasing. Rohit and Shikhar went to open the innings. But unfortunately for India, Shikhar's wicket fell on 18 runs. Virat joined Rohit on the crease. They produced a steady partnership of 76 runs but as luck would have it Rohit got out. Harry too was not able to do much and score was 144/3. That's when Virat signalled for Mahi. Virat knew that now only Mahi would be able to fish them out of this trouble. After all it will be the Mahirat duo on the pitch together.

The whole stadium once again stood up on their feet screaming extra hard than what they had been doing till now. The chants of 'Dhoni Dhoni' could be heard quite clearly.

"DHONII DHONIII"

"THALA DHONIII"

"DHONIIIIIIIIII"

Virat looked at Mahi and smiled a big smile. Mahi smiled back as he took strike. Morris bowled the first ball to him. Mahi missed it. The second ball met the same fate. The third was a lucky escape, if not then Mahi would have definitely ended up in the hospital. Virat had started feeling worried now. Mahi bhai missing three continuous balls was not something that we generally see. And Morris was bowling normal deliveries, not some very extraordinary balls, that Mahi bhai wasn't even able to pick it. It was worrying. Very worrying. He realised that Mahi had lost his confidence due what happened in the past few days and he needed just one shot, just one, to bring back Mahi's bhai confidence in himself. 

The next ball, Mahi managed to pull it to the covers and Virat took a blind run to get Mahi to the non-striker's end. His main concern was to not let Mahi Bhai get hurt now.

Unknown to Virat, Mahi was feeling more than a little dismantled. He was feeling under the weather to be precise. He tried but couldn't get the ball on the bat. He didn't know why but all that happened in the past few days started to haunt him. He tried to push those thoughts away, tell himself that it's over, everything is fine now, but failed miserably. He saw Virat run blindly, almost getting out on 47, just to protect him. Virat hit the next ball for a boundary, the last ball was a dot ball and the over completed without any further mishaps.

During the over break, Virat walked up to Mahi bhai. "What happened Bhai? You seem a little.... down. Is something bothering you?", asked Virat. 

"No Cheeku. I'm fine. It's nothing", said Mahi, trying to put on a happy face, but it's Virat we are talking about. He saw right through the façade.

"Bhai..", Virat began, but couldn't say anything further as the umpire signalled for the next over. "Be careful, Bhai. Don't get hurt", he said as he went to his end. 

Mahi nodded as he took strike again. On the first ball of the next over, Mahi again tried to connect it but again he missed it. What's happening to me? he thought, furious with himself.

He was starting to feel helpless when his eyes automatically landed on Virat's. Virat's worried but pleading eyes seemed to scream "WE NEED YOU BHAI" at him. Mahi suddenly saw a flash in his mind. Why was he doing this? His team needs him, his country needs him and most importantly his younger brother has to say to him that he needs him? Isn't he supposed to know that already? The people who matter are loving him, trying to make everything normal for him, his Cheeku also had an outburst a few days back due to this sole reason and still he is dwelling on the words of those utterly ridiculous people who just want to put him down. Who don't know him at all?