Beginning of The End

XX

How long had it been?

She wondered with nostalgia as she walked through the VIP box with Danielle. She had many memories of the place. Some of which would be framed in the warmest corners of her heart until the end of time.

When Shah Rukh had conducted Virat's swayamvar in the 2014 opening ceremony, Anushka had her heart in her mouth as she waited to see how Virat would react. But the way he had handled everything so gracefully. And how easily he'd said it that he carried her picture around in his wallet, something even she had been unaware of.

And 2015 when their match against Delhi had been interrupted due to rain. Although Anushka had been reluctant, Virat had managed to trap her with his infamous pout, an incident that Yuvraj would not stop teasing them about. And neither would the media.

Then came 2016, a year where Anushka had sneaked inside the dressing room multiple times between innings to make sure that Virat had truly been okay.

Their first IPL after their marriage in 2018, where AB and Yuzi had taken it upon themselves to become unbearable for the couple- reminding them every two seconds how they had been the ones to help them sneak out on dates before marriage.

Their team might not have been at their best in 2019, but Anushka had managed to find a best friend in Danielle. She'd even forged a silent alliance with the little boys against her husband, which consisted of them stealing packets of snacks from the man.

"Inhone lockdown me to bas Anushka ki gendon ki practice ki hain"

And some memories, no matter how hard Anushka tried, just wouldn't go away.

Standing in the VIP box with Dhanashree as she cheered for their husbands- the crowd in the stadium, shouting his name, the banners people were holding up, everything seemed strange to her. The last time she had come to watch a match had been in Dubai under the covid protocols, and that had been almost two years ago.

Two years, that had felt like a lifetime.

Chennai Super Kings had won the toss and opted to bat first.

Although they had lost Ruturaj early in the powerplay, Faf du Plessis and Ambati Rayudu had built a 86 runs partnership. With quick boundaries from Jaddu towards the end, their total score stood at 186 by the end of the first innings.

Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal were the opening batsmen for Royal Challengers Bangalore, their playing eleven unchanged.

As always, Virat seemed to be on a rampage, sending almost every ball of Hazelwood to meet the boundary ropes. And what could not be a four would fetch them at least two with the quick running they did.

"Reverse swat and clears deep point. Targeting the shorter side and the last ball of the over, he swivels and sends the short ball on its way. Chahar looks stunned. This is quite the shot and one you'd be expecting when RCB's playing but not from this man. This has the Australian phenomenon written all over it."

Maxwell could be seen laughing at the dugout, raising his hands above his head as the camera zoomed in on him while Yuzi was almost rolling on the floor.

They already had a score of 47 runs accumulated in just twelve balls, and the skipper's wife could be seen cheering with Dhanashree as Virat hit that maximum off Chahar.