Equals

Strange are the ways of nature. Akki was taller than most of his
playmates for the first eight years of his life. In school he was asked
to sit in the last row often with the repeaters. Though it felt strange
at first the arrangement made him feel like an adult much in advance.
That he was a good student made him like a tall grown-up in a crowd of
toddlers. Naturally when he started playing cricket it was fast bowling
that he chose as his calling. He dreamt of being a strapping paceman
with the red ball in hand wreaking havoc in the minds of batsmen. And
then, fate struck a cruel blow. After his eighth birthday his speed of
growth diminished. While his bones and body expanded horizontally his
vertical growth became slower. By the age of fifteen it became clear
that Akki would never exceed five feet six inches in height. His coach
often suggested that he should take up leg-spin but Akki was adamant.
He had to become The pace express or he would stop playing cricket.
People often ridiculed him about his height. They said he needed a
ladder to climb to his bed. His fellow cricketers said he should wear a
fluorescent sweater over his flannels or else the batsman may not be
able to spot him running in. Akki refused to listen to all that was
thrown in his direction. He treated these insults as fuel for the fire
of his ambitions. He would become a fast bowler. His coach was very
impressed by the young man's determination and despite doubts regarding
his short stature he did all he could. On his advice Akki decided to
forget about his lack of height and build up speed. He did a lot of
weight training to build up body parts and stuck to a nutritious diet.
To increase stamina he would run around Eden Gardens thirty times a
day. He visited nearby districts and did some cross-country running
too. And he stayed focused on being a successful fast bowler. He
changed to a diagonal run-up because he felt it gave him more
power.
Akki was now nineteen years old. In a neighbouring country a new
exciting batsman was emerging. Init was the exact antithesis of what
Akki was all about. Six feet three and reed-thin he had great wrists.
His flicks and leg-glances were being talked about all over the world.
He had just played ten tests and already had five centuries in his
kitty. A series with Akki's country was coming up. Meanwhile Akki had
been going great guns in the local tournaments. More than his accuracy,
swing or variation people were raving about his tremendous speed. In
the finals of the national cup he bowled his state to victory with an
eight-wicket haul which included a hat-trick. Not surprisingly nineteen
year old Akki was chosen for the national squad.
The venue for the Test was Eden Gardens, Akki's home ground. When Akki
and team arrived at the ground eighty thousand people were roaring and
cheering for them. Init's team won the toss and decided to bat. As Akki
walked into the ground along with the rest of the team someone
commented,' Look at that little fellow. He will require a ladder just
to see Init's face. Someone so short could never get our Init out.'
Akki's blood began to boil and he felt ashamed of his body-all five
feet six inches of it. As the batting side took the field the stadium
roared. Very soon Init took strike against Seenath . For his pains
Seenath was hammered all over the ground for sixteen runs by Init and
the other opener. Now it was Akki's turn to bowl. As Akki marked his
run-up he eyed lanky Init taking guard. And he said to himself 'This is
my opportunity to prove my worth to all those who had ridiculed me for
my height. This is the time for me to show the world how they were
wrong in doubting my abilities.' He started his menacing run up at an
angle of 45 degrees to the pitch. As he ran in he spotted Init looking
at him eagerly. And then it happened. As the ball left Akki's hand and
sped towards Init, the promising batsman threw his all at it. But that
was not enough. On making contact with the bat the ball flew straight
to gully where it was caught. The bat, that proud bat was no longer in
Init's grip. It flew to cover point where it instantly split into two.
The revenge was complete. A speedster called Akki, small and compact
was born . Init did not know where to hide such was his shame.