The call didn't come immediately.
It waited.
Three more sessions passed—each one longer, quieter, more demanding than the last. The unfamiliar men returned every Sunday, sometimes standing together, sometimes apart. Always watching. Never intervening.
Rudra stopped counting them as outsiders.
If they were there, they were part of the ground now.
The Approach
It happened after nets.
Bats were being packed. Shoes loosened. Boys talked loudly again, tension leaking away with sweat.
One of the men finally walked over.
He was in his early forties, lean, sun-browned. The notebook stayed tucked under his arm.
"You're Rudra Rao," he said. Not a question.
"Yes, sir."
"I'm Sanjay Menon. Head coach, Crescent Cricket Academy."
The name landed quietly—but it carried weight.
Sanjay looked him over once more. "You don't waste balls."
Rudra waited.
"We're starting a new Under-14 batch. Smaller group. Higher load."
A pause.
"If you're interested."
No promise.
No praise.
Just an opening.
At Home
That night, the discussion was short.
Mahesh Rao read the brochure carefully—fees, timings, travel.
Saraswati Rao focused on the schedule.
"Five days a week," she said softly.
"Yes," Rudra replied.
She looked at him for a long moment. "And school?"
"I won't drop it."
Mahesh nodded. "Then we try."
No speeches.
No pressure.
Decision made.
First Day
Crescent Cricket Academy wasn't grand.
Two turf wickets.
One rough outfield.
A gym that smelled of iron and chalk.
But everything had order.
Attendance strict.
Warm-ups timed.
No phones.
No parents near the nets.
Sanjay Menon stood at the center.
"Here," he said, "talent doesn't matter. Availability does. Discipline does. Recovery does."
His eyes swept the group.
"If you miss sessions, you fall behind. If you break, you rest. If you complain, you leave."
No one spoke.
Rudra listened carefully.
This was not encouragement.
This was filtration.
The Workload
The first week hit hard.
Morning conditioning twice a week
Evening nets focused on defense and rotation
Fielding every session, no exceptions
Fitness logged, not negotiated
Rudra felt the strain—but also the structure.
He slept deeper.
Ate cleaner.
Stopped rushing anything.
System Record (Minimal, Passive)
Late one night, while icing his calves, awareness aligned.
Stamina: consistent gain under sustained load
Fielding: incremental improvement
Balance: stabilized during fatigue
No levels.
No celebration.
Academy work didn't spike growth.
It compressed it.
Understanding the Step
Rudra sat on the academy steps after the final session of the week, kit bag at his feet.
Around him, boys talked about soreness, about strict coaches, about quitting.
Rudra stayed silent.
This wasn't the next stage of cricket.
This was the beginning of separation.
From casual players.
From short bursts of effort.
From comfort.
Joining the academy didn't make him better overnight.
It did something more important.
It removed excuses.
And as Rudra stood up and walked toward the gate, he knew—
From here on, progress wouldn't be measured in matches.
It would be measured in how long he could stay inside this grind without breaking.