I knew the stakes the moment I stepped out to open. This was not just another game. This was the game that could decide whether we stayed alive in the top four or watched our season go out of our hands. For a change I was not walking out with Maanik but with Fahad. He started brightly and the scoreboard was ticking along nicely which gave me some comfort. But cricket has its way of twisting the script. In the third over we lost Fahad for 16 off 11.
I looked across and saw Maanik making his way out. He was not fully well but he still wanted to be there in the fight. That is the kind of teammate he is. Sadly he could not last long. In the fourth over he was run out after just three balls. I was only on 12 off 10 at that point but I was already watching two of our key men walk back.
The pressure was immense. Every run suddenly felt heavier. Losing this match would mean jeopardizing our playoff hopes and that thought would not leave my mind. At the same time I could not control what was happening at the other end. Wickets kept falling.
Arafat came in next and he was like a thunderstorm. He threw himself at the bowling and scored 14 off 8 with fearless intent but storms pass quickly. He tried one big shot too many and was gone. The scoreboard told me I was 17 off 16 and still searching for momentum. I could not connect cleanly. I could not find my rhythm. With every dismissal the pressure on me grew.
Abrar came in and tried to hold up one end but Akash removed him with a sharp caught and bowled. I was sitting on 21 off 23 which was one of the slowest starts of my life. It did not matter. What mattered was that we were already in a hole. Then Akash struck again in the same over and removed Imran. By the end of the ninth over we were 64 for 5. Our innings was on the brink of collapse and I was running out of partners.
That was the point where I had to make a choice. Either play safe and watch the game slip away or take control of the chase for runs.
Rahi walked in and gave me the reassurance I desperately needed. He stayed with me and we started nudging singles and twos. The strike rotation gave me a chance to breathe and rebuild. At the end of the 11th over I was 30 off 31. The runs were still slow but there was a flicker of momentum. Then came the twelfth over against Amandeep. I saw the ball in my zone and finally freed my arms. Two clean sixes later I felt the energy shift. For the first time in the innings I felt I was dictating the game.
But the match kept testing me. Rahi fell. Indranil fell soon after. Each dismissal was a reminder that I could not rely on anyone else to finish the job. It was my responsibility. By then the ball was coming onto the bat perfectly. My strike rate surged and before long I was celebrating my fifty. It was not just a milestone it was a lifeline for the team.
Then came Binit. He may not have scored much but his presence was priceless. He stayed with me and that was all I needed. Our partnership produced 50 runs in a little over five overs of which I made 48. I was in the zone. Every ball looked hittable and every boundary released the tension that had built up earlier in the day.
As the innings drew to a close I knew we had reached a total that could win us the match. In the final over I finished in style with a four a six and another four in the last three balls. When the dust settled I was unbeaten on 94 from 64 deliveries. The team total was 159 and Wolves fell 23 runs short.
It was not a hundred on the scoreboard but to me it felt like more than that. It was the innings that kept us alive. It was the innings that turned nerves into belief. Walking off with my bat raised and knowing I had carried my side into the playoffs was a feeling that words can barely capture. Some innings are about personal milestones. This one was about survival pride and keeping our season alive.