God of Cricket!-Chapter 37: A Little Fame, Injury, and Rewards

Chapter 38: A Little Fame, Injury, and Rewards

The organizers of the Vinoo Mankad Trophy set up the podium for the post-match presentation on the lush outfield of the Chinnaswamy Stadium. The trophy was a gleaming silver cup with intricate carvings, standing tall on a pedestal.

A senior BCCI official, along with the president of the Karnataka State Cricket Association, were the ones who would be presenting the medals and the trophy.

Some of the Delhi U19 players couldn’t help but cry for what could have been. They had tried their hardest—Virat Kohli looked absolutely devastated, his cap pulled low over his eyes—but ultimately they had lost by the barest of margins.

Aryan stood there watching them with a tinge of guilt in his heart. As a reincarnated soul, he knew the future greatness of these players.

He knew Kohli would rule world cricket in a few years. He felt he had robbed them of a pivotal moment in their timeline.

[But that’s why you’re here, so don’t feel guilty. You were chosen by the System so use the System to rewrite history,] Max, the masculine voice of the System (sounding like a famous commentator), echoed in his mind.

Aryan readied himself to go for his medal after all the Delhi players had received their runner-up medals.

The Mumbai U19 players and their support staff all went for their medals and were finally poised to lift the trophy.

Prithvi, the captain, went ahead to lift the trophy but realized something and called Vikram (the senior-most player/Vice-Captain) to come and lift it.

Vikram shook his head, wanting the captain to do the honors, but Prithvi insisted because Vikram had led the team during the zonal stages when Prithvi was injured.

Vikram nodded and, together with the other players, lifted the trophy towards the Bangalore sky.

Aryan had been given the Man of the Match award for his century and five-wicket haul, and subsequently, the Player of the Series (MVP) for his all-round performance throughout the knockouts.

This triggered a hidden achievement.

"Ding."

[Host has unlocked hidden achievement "Player of the Series" in a National Tournament.]

Rewards:

10 Stat Points

1 Muscle Strengthening Elixir

[Host has won MOTM award in a final for the first time in his career.]

Rewards:

10 Stat Points

1 Recovery Elixir

Aryan smiled at the rewards the holographic screen was showing in front of his eyes.

Aryan took his awards—large cheques and trophies—and met his mom at the tunnel after he asked the officials if his family could come down to the boundary line.

"Ahh Aryan, I’m so proud of you," Priya said while snuggling Aryan, ignoring the cameras.

"Come on Ma, I’m sweaty and covered in dust," Aryan complained playfully.

"It doesn’t matter," Priya said, holding him tighter.

Aryan smiled at his mother. "Wanna join?" he said while looking at Riya and Ananya, who were standing awkwardly to the side.

They both looked at each other before joining them.

Aryan felt happy in that moment, and that began to scare him a bit as he has been feeling too happy as of late and had a bad premonition about being that happy—the calm before the storm.

The Next Morning

Aryan woke up the next morning in the hotel room to find his name in some of the major Indian news articles. He saw some of the articles about the ’Vinoo Mankad Trophy Final’ that happened the day before.

It seemed that his performance—especially the halfway-line throw and the century—had really left an impression on the journalists in the press box.

All or most of the articles were mentioning his name in bold letters.

"The New Kapil Dev?" read one headline.

"14-Year-Old Prodigy Sinks Delhi." read another.

Some of the news companies and articles had even implied that the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) had received informal inquiries from IPL Franchises (who were scouting for the upcoming inaugural 2008 season) and even English County youth sides.

Aryan knew this was probably just hype, and he, as it stands, didn’t want to leave Mumbai yet as he hadn’t accomplished anything at the senior level (Ranjit Trophy).

Aryan kept scrolling on the hotel computer and saw one title comparing his match-winning six to the one Sachin Tendulkar hit during the ’Desert Storm’ innings against Australia in Sharjah.

"Guess I’m a little famous," Aryan thought with a smug expression on his face.

NCA Medical Room, Bangalore (Two Days Later)

8:50 AM

Aryan was now in the medical room with the NCA physios and the Mumbai team doctor. The pain in his ankle from the final landing hadn’t subsided.

"Sorry Aryan, but you have a Grade 2 soft tissue tear in your ankle ligaments," the doctor said, looking at the MRI scan.

Aryan smiled wryly as the head physio spoke. His premonition had been proved right; the injury had struck.

"So how long is it going to take for me to heal fully?" he asked.

"Well, depending on the seriousness and rehab, you could be out for close to 7 weeks if your healing factor is good, or 9 weeks if you’re just like the rest of us," said the physio with a sympathetic smile.

Aryan also smiled as he knew what he was going to do.

After the diagnosis, the physio made a recovery plan for Aryan which he was to follow for the duration of his injury.

The medical team also told Coach Kulkarni to inform the Mumbai Ranji Team management that Aryan wouldn’t be available for the pre-season fitness camp.

Aryan’s time with injuries was mostly repetitive as he would wake up and go for recovery sessions at the MCA facility in Mumbai (after returning) before coming home.

The injury hadn’t taken away his mobility completely (he was in a protective boot), so he could go for a few short evening walks with Ananya.

This continued till she left for Delhi University 2 weeks later.

Aryan didn’t know why he was feeling empty as he watched her taxi leave, but he didn’t pay heed to the feeling.

He had already taken the Injury Elixir (A-Grade) together with the Recovery Elixir and knew he would recover in about one to two weeks, defying medical science.

Aryan’s Room, Mumbai

Aryan opened his Quest tab and looked at the unreaped rewards.

[QUEST STATUS]

1. Host should score 300 runs and take 10 wickets...

Status: Completed

Reward: +5 Stat Points, +10,000 LP

2. Mumbai U19 should top West Zone Group.

Status: Completed

Reward: +10 Stat Points, +7,000 LP

3. Win in the Quarter-Finals...

Status: Completed

Reward: +15 Stat Points

4. Win in the Semi-Finals...

Status: Completed

Reward: +20 Stat Points, +20,000 LP

5. Win the Final of the ’Vinoo Mankad Trophy’.

Status: Completed

Reward: +25 Stat Points, 1 Free Trait, 40,000 LP

Bonus: Senior Team Call-up [Withheld due to Injury].

Aryan looked at the rewards and was elated by them. He was surprised to know that he had gained a massive [45] Stat Points (from the accumulated wins) and 77,000 LP (Total accumulated).

He first opened his Player tab and looked at the number of stat points and LP points he had.

[PLAYER INFO]

NAME: ARYAN SHARMA

AGE: 14

PLAYER RATING: 70/100

LEGEND POINTS: 94,800/67,000 to LV 5

STAT POINTS: 65 (Accumulated from Quests and Hidden Achievements)

[STATS]

Speed: 70

Footwork: 70

Spatial Awareness: 71

Technique: 70

Batting: 72

Bowling: 72

Physical Strength: 72

Weak Zone Proficiency: 4 stars

Shot Creativity: 5 stars (Unlocked previously)

Aryan used 2 stat points to bring his Batting attributes to round numbers and was left with [63] stat points.

Aryan looked at the number of stat points and LP points and decided to upgrade his System after he had claimed his Trait and checked his inventory.

[Host can choose from this list of Traits]

Speedster (Pace): +5 Speed stat points immediately after being equipped.

The Wall (Boulder): 5% increase in Defensive Technique stats.

Sniper (Pinpoint Accuracy): 10% increase to Bowling Accuracy and Throwing Accuracy stats.

Flair Finisher: Adds a bit of flair/style to finishing shots (Sixes).

Aryan looked at the four and decided to go with Sniper (Pinpoint Accuracy) as it was a no-brainer for an all-rounder who needed to hit yorkers and direct hits.

Before Aryan continued, he decided to buy the Speedster trait if it was available in the shop. He opened the traits section and saw that it was there and purchased it for 10,000 LP points.

Aryan opened his personal tab once more to confirm.

[TRAITS]

Improviser: Equipped

Gap Piercer: Equipped

Blitz: Equipped

Sniper: Equipped

Speedster: Equipped

Aryan continued and opened his inventory to see the potions and elixirs in his stock.

[INVENTORY]

Recovery Elixir: Helps Host in pre and post-match recovery and reduces fatigue.

Stock: 7 unused

Injury Elixir: Helps Host to rid himself of injuries faster.

C Grade: Increases recovery speed by 10%. Stock: 4

B Grade: Increases recovery speed by 25%. Stock: 2

A Grade: Increases recovery speed by 50%. Stock: 1

Muscle Strengthening Elixir: Increases the strength, durability, and flexibility of muscles and helps prevent injuries.

Stock: 1 unused

Aryan after looking at his inventory decided to use the Muscle Strengthening Elixir.

He brought out the elixir which was in the form of a protein bar (or candy bar) and ate it. Aryan was surprised to see a chocolate-hazelnut kind of taste in his mouth as he devoured it.

Aryan stood there waiting for a reaction from the elixir and it finally hit him.

His muscles convulsed and throbbed violently. He could feel them being torn over and over and being fixed at the same time, denser and more explosive.

Aryan couldn’t hold it in and let out a little scream of pain.

Priya, down in the kitchen, thought she heard a scream and decided to go up and check what was going on. Just as she was about to head up, she got a call from her office which she picked up for a bit, delaying her.

Aryan’s breathing finally relaxed as he lay on the floor sweating. He took a Recovery Elixir and drank it. He could feel the warmth over his body soothing the ache.

After a few minutes, he stood up and looked at himself in the mirror. Aryan took off his shirt and could see that his six-pack was now an eight-pack, and his obliques had gotten a little bit more muscular and defined.

Aryan’s body was looking really athletic—like a young Virat Kohli—and it seemed that his already handsome face had received a boost as all sorts of baby fat in his face had been rid off, leaving a sharp jawline.

Priya opened the door to find her son topless and flexing.

"Aaaah, Aryan is now a grown man with muscles?" she teased.

Aryan rolled his eyes before walking off to the bathroom, as he knew this woman wouldn’t stop till she felt satisfied teasing him.

Aryan then decided to upgrade his System.

[Does Host want to use ’67,000’ LP points to upgrade the System to Level 5?]

[Yes / No]

Aryan clicked the Yes button and the upgrade was initiated.

[System undergoing upgrade. System will be going offline for 10 hours in 3....2.....1]

Aryan watched on as his System went offline. This upgrade would get his System to Level 5 and Aryan was excited for what this upgrade would bring to him—perhaps the simulation room or advanced tactical analysis.

Aryan continued with his supposed recovery, resting his ankle, and just like that, time passed.

(To be Continued)