The Bullring was vibrating. The Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg, packed to its 34,000 capacity, was a cauldron of noise, flags, and the terrifying, electric anticipation of a Final.
The 2009 IPL Final. The Deccan Chargers vs. The Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Adam Gilchrist and Anil Kumble stood in the center. The coin went up.
"Tails," Kumble called.
It was tails.
"We'll bowl," Kumble said, his voice steel-hard. "It's a final. We want to know the target. The pitch has a bit of spice early on."
In the Deccan huddle, Gilchrist was calm. "Right. We lost the toss. Who cares? We put runs on the board. Big runs. It's a final. The pressure is on the chasers. Let's go."
The First Innings
"Here we go!" Ravi Shastri's voice echoed around the world. "The final of the DLF IPL 2009! Anil Kumble has asked the Chargers to bat. Out walk Adam Gilchrist and Herschelle Gibbs. Can Gilly repeat his semi-final heroics?"
Over 1:
Anil Kumble, the master tactician, did the unthinkable. He opened the bowling himself.
Ball 1: Leg break. Gilchrist defended.
Ball 2: Slider. Gilchrist left it.
Ball 3: Gilchrist, impatient, stepped out to hit over the top. He misread the googly completely. The ball spun through the gate.
Clatter.
The stumps were shattered.
WICKET 1: A. Gilchrist b. Kumble 0.
"GONE! HE'S GONE FOR A DUCK!" Harsha Bhogle screamed. "Anil Kumble strikes in the first over! The captain removes the captain! What a start for Bangalore! The Chargers are rocked early!"
The stadium was stunned. Gilchrist, the MVP, was walking back.
DC: 0 for 1 (0.3 Overs).
Siddanth Deva walked out. The Number 3. The Orange Cap holder.
He met Gibbs in the middle.
"Settle down, Herschelle," Siddanth said, his voice calm. "Kumble is bowling magic. We don't lose another wicket in the power play. Just rotate."
It was a grind. Kumble bowled his four overs straight through. He was unplayable.
Siddanth and Gibbs survived. They didn't hit boundaries. They tapped, they nudged, they ran hard.
Siddanth played defensive shots against Praveen Kumar's swing. He would negotiate Kumble without attacking him.
By the end of the 10th over, the score was a sluggish 65 for 1.
Gibbs: 32 runs (30 balls).
Siddanth: 29 runs (22 balls).
The dugout was anxious. The run rate was 6.5.
"Strategic time-out," the umpire signalled.
Siddanth drank water. He looked at Gibbs.
"Kumble is done," Siddanth said, wiping sweat from his forehead. "Now we go. Every ball."
Gibbs nodded, chewing his gum furiously. "Let's unleash hell, kid."
The Explosion
Over 11 (Roelof van der Merwe):
Siddanth was on strike.
Ball 1: Step out. Inside-out drive over extra cover.
SIX.
Ball 2: Reverse sweep.
FOUR.
"And the shackles are broken!" Danny Morrison yelled. "Deva decides it is time to party! That inside-out shot was pure class!"
Gibbs joined in. He smashed Jacques Kallis for two boundaries in the 12th over.
They raced to 100.
But in the 13th over, Gibbs tried to slog Vinay Kumar and was caught at long-on.
WICKET 2: H. Gibbs c. Pandey b. Vinay Kumar 53 (48 balls).
DC: 110 for 2.
Andrew Symonds walked in.
"14 overs gone," Symonds grunted. "Hit out or get out?"
"Hit out," Siddanth said. "I'm seeing it like a football."
Siddanth was on 45.
Over 16 (Praveen Kumar):
Ball 1: Siddanth shuffled across and scooped the medium pacer over fine leg. FOUR.
Ball 2: Full toss. Siddanth smashed it straight back. FOUR.
He reached his 53 off 30 balls. He didn't celebrate. He just punched gloves with Symonds.
Ball 3: Short ball. Pulled over mid-wicket. SIX.
Symonds destroyed Vinay Kumar in the 17th over, hitting two massive sixes. He scored a brutal 33 off 21 balls before being caught at deep square leg.
WICKET 3.
Rohit Sharma walked in.
Siddanth was on 72.
Over 19 (Jacques Kallis):
Siddanth on strike.
Ball 1: Kallis bowled a yorker. Siddanth opened the face. FOUR past point.
Ball 2: Kallis went short. Siddanth hooked. It landed in the crowd. SIX.
Ball 3: Full. Driven through covers. FOUR.
"He is unstoppable!" Sunil Gavaskar exclaimed. "Kallis is a legend, and Deva is treating him like a net bowler! He is accessing every corner of the Bullring!"
Over 20 (Praveen Kumar):
Rohit Sharma on strike.
Ball 1: Six over long-on.
Ball 2: Four through covers.
Ball 3: Four over point.
Ball 4: Single.
Siddanth on strike. 2 balls left.
He was on 86.
Ball 5: Low full toss. Siddanth whipped it to deep mid-wicket. They ran two.
Ball 6: Yorker. Siddanth dug it out and ran like a hare. Two runs.
Siddanth Deva: 88 (38 balls).*
Rohit Sharma: 20 (10 balls).*
Deccan Chargers: 194 for 3.
"What a finish!" Shastri roared. "129 runs in the last 10 overs! Siddanth Deva has played a gem! 88 not out in a final! Deccan has put a mountain on the board!"
The Second Innings
195 to win. In a final. Under lights.
The RCB dugout looked shell-shocked. But they had batting. Jacques Kallis and Manish Pandey walked out.
Siddanth took the new ball.
"Tight," Gilchrist said. "Just tight."
Over 1:
Siddanth bowled the "Heavy Ball" line. 145kph, back of a length.
Kallis couldn't free his arms.
3 runs.
RP Singh bowled the second over. Swing. 4 runs.
Siddanth bowled the third. Maiden.
RP bowled the fourth. 8 runs.
RCB was 15 for 0 after 4 overs. The pressure was building.
The Collapse Begins
Over 5:
Kallis lost patience. He tried to hit RP Singh over the top. Mistimed.
Caught at mid-off.
WICKET 1: J. Kallis c. Symonds b. RP Singh 15.
Over 6:
Manish Pandey, the centurion from the last game, faced Siddanth.
Siddanth bowled the Wobble Seam. It nipped back.
Pandey was cramped. He tried to tuck it. Leading edge.
The ball popped up to short cover.
Rohit Sharma took a dolly.
WICKET 2: M. Pandey c. Rohit b. Deva 4.
"The heroes are falling!" Bhogle shouted. "Deva gets Pandey! The centurion is gone for single digits! Deccan is tightening the noose!"
Roelof van der Merwe came in and tried to counter-attack. He hit a few lusty blows, scoring 32.
But the required rate was climbing to 12.
He tried to sweep Pragyan Ojha and was stumped. Wicket 3.
Rahul Dravid walked in. The Wall.
He tried to stabilize, but the rate was too high. He scored 9 before chipping a catch to Gibbs off Symonds. Wicket 4.
Ross Taylor came in. The danger man.
He hit a quick 27, threatening to bring RCB back.
But he was undone by a brilliant piece of fielding from Siddanth at long-on, who cut off a boundary and fired a throw to the bowler's end, keeping Taylor off strike, frustrating him into a false shot next ball off Ojha.
Wicket 5.
Over 15:
Virat Kohli walked in.
The scorecard read 100 for 5. They needed 95 off 30 balls.
Kohli tried. He really did.
But the pressure was too much. He tried to pull RP Singh and was caught at deep square leg for 7.
WICKET 6.
"It is falling apart for Bangalore!" Morrison yelled. "The wheels are coming off! The Chargers can smell the trophy!"
Mark Boucher fell cheaply.
Wicket 7.
Robin Uthappa was fighting a lone battle at the other end, scoring 17*.
The Death Overs
Over 19:
Praveen Kumar on strike.
Siddanth came back for his final over.
Ball 1: 152kph Yorker.
Praveen backed away. The stumps were shattered.
WICKET 8: P. Kumar b. Deva 2.
Ball 2: Vinay Kumar.
Siddanth bowled the 110kph Slower Ball.
Vinay swung early. Missed.
Dot.
Ball 3: 148kph Bouncer. Vinay fended it.
Dot.
Siddanth finished his spell.
4 overs, 16 runs, 2 wickets.
Over 20:
RP Singh.
Vinay Kumar tried to slog. Caught at long-on.
WICKET 9: Vinay Kumar c. Suman b. RP Singh 8.
Anil Kumble walked out. The last man.
They needed 58 runs. It was mathematically impossible.
They just blocked.
Kumble scored 1. Uthappa stayed not out.
Royal Challengers Bangalore: 137 for 9.
DECCAN CHARGERS WON BY 57 RUNS.