A beautiful game

The rain was a happy break to the scorching heat the previous month witnessed. Temperature was predicted to touch no more than 30°C that day. The air was moist and pleasant and it ensured that everyone who confined themselves to their homes made a visit to their balconies frequently to relish such a setting. He was one of them. Having made a routine visit to his sister’s house, he couldn’t resist but enjoy the weather. The house was on the second floor of an apartment colony consisting of over 50 flats. He saw that the road ahead was devoid of any human activity. All struck up home, he thought. Then he heard some noise germinating from the ground floor. It was a group of kids, all school going he surmised, passing a football between them as they seem to in mood for a muddy fierce game. A smile bloomed on his face as he suddenly decided that the time has come. The time has come to pay a visit to the beautiful game, again…

“Can I join you guys?” he asked the group as soon as he headed down.
“Do you know how to play? You look too old for this” he got an arrogant reply from a kid.
He smiled and asked himself mentally. Do I know to play this?
He is a wonder! A child prodigy! A class apart! , he recollected the excitement people used to get when they saw him in action.
“Pass the ball to my chest and I’ll show you!” he replied to the kid.
The kid tossed the ball in the air and he collected it with his chest. He bounced it alternatively on his chest and his head without moving an inch sideways. The ball
control was exquisite and he was counting the bounces as it crossed 50…

“This boy loves the ball so much that it never leaves him! Absolute control! Something I have never seen in a kid” the coach was telling his assistant. “He will go places”…

The count was nearing 100. The boys circled around him clearly amazed at his ability. The count was 95. 96, when the ball slightly bounced sideways to the right. 97, he tried to keep it in play. There was a sound of ‘ooooo’ emanating from the kids. 98, the ball went too sideways to the right and he desperately made a big movement towards it and kept it in play. The kids were getting equally excited as ‘ooo’s and ‘aah’s became prominent. 99, he couldn’t handle the movement and suddenly slipped and fell down while heading the 100th bounce. There as a loud clap. The arrogant kid gave his hand to help him lift himself and said “Welcome to our team!”

“Welcome to the team!” the proud manager was telling him. “You will be the youngest at 16 to make a representation at this prestigious club! Congrats!”…

“How are you so good at football? You played in college?” one of the kids asked him.
He smiled again and said “Actually, I never went to college because of this game! I played for the Mohun Bagan club some 20 years ago”
“Wow!! Then you must be a national player! Do you still play?”
“No. I left the game long back” was his short reply.
“Why?”
“Oh let’s leave that and start playing!” he enthused the kids.
“Ok! Let’s split 5-5 and play” the kid exclaimed.
“Sure. Hey one condition! I will play as a goalie only ok?” he asked the kids who looked puzzled at first and then said yes.

“You are our main forward. You don’t cross into our half ever” the manager was telling him. “Wait till the two midfields pass the ball and then it’s all up to you! We believe in you!” He simply nodded.

The game was as he predicted. Fierce and muddy. These kids have potential, he thought. The ball seldom came to him and when it did he stopped them all easily. His passes by hands were extremely accurate and the kicks that he took without much of a run, almost reached the other goal post.
“Man! You play awesome! I have never seen a leftie play so well” exclaimed one of his defenders.
“Leftie?” he laughed to himself.

“This guy is so ambidextrous. Look at him controlling in both the wings. He can take free kicks in any leg and still get his goal! Ever got such a player?” the manager was boasting about his new find to his counterpart during an exhibition match.

The drizzle stopped and so did the game. The kids seemed exhausted as they bade goodbye to their new found mate. He felt a childlike excitement as he walked back to his sister’s house. It felt as if he always belonged to the game. It was his dream, his passion, his everything. It was…

His sister opened and door when he knocked it.
“Where the hell were you?” she was furious. “You left your mobile here and went missing for 2 hours! I was worried!”
“I played football” he said with a smile.
“What?! How could you?” she was stunned at first. Then she studied him and asked “It has been long isn’t it?”
“Yes” he said as tears appeared to roll off his eyes. “It’s been 20 years!”
She sensed the emotion, immediately hugged him and whispered “I am sorry. Fate had its own plans”
“That’s fine” he made a brave face and strode towards the room with the computer. He logged in to the net while his thoughts wandered.

“Hey dude! You are coming for the match right?” asked his best friend in the team.
“I am not sure. I have to attend my sister’s wedding” he proclaimed.
“Ahh! Come on! The team needs you. We can’t lose this one. You can always get back in time for your sister’s wedding. We can ask the manager to sponsor the costs”
“Hmmm. let me see”

He typed google.com and searched for “Indian Airlines Flight 605” thereafter. He opened the Wiki page that came up at first and read it for the millionth time he could recollect…

“Flight 605 was a flight on 14 February 1990 that crashed on its final approach to Bangalore airport, killing 92 people.

Flight IC-605
Accident summary
Date: 14 February 1990
Type: Controlled flight into terrain
Site: Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Passengers: 139
Crew: 7
Injuries: 54
Fatalities: 92
Survivors: 54
Aircraft type: Airbus A320-231
Operator: Indian Airlines
”
He took a marker and circled the “Injuries: 54” part on the monitor as he started crying aloud. He recollected how the day changed his life forever. He lifted the pant sleeve in this right leg and saw the artificial limb attached from his knee. A sudden burst of anger saw him swearing at the game he loved. It cheated on him when he was so loyal to it. He had vowed never to touch the ball again…