The living room was silent, save for the hum of the ceiling fan and the voice of Richard Madley coming from the old Sony TV. Rao sat on the edge of the sofa, his hands clasped so tightly his knuckles were white. Sai's mother was in the puja room, chanting softly, the smell of agarbatti drifting into the hall.
Sai sat on the floor, leaning against the wall. He wasn't training today. He wasn't studying. He was waiting.
The Context
The IPL 2014 Auction was a mega-auction. All teams had been reshuffled. The stars—Yuvraj Singh, Kevin Pietersen, Dinesh Karthik—had already been sold for massive amounts in the morning session. Yuvraj went for a record 14 Crores to RCB.
But now, it was the afternoon session. Category: Uncapped Indian All-Rounders.
This was the "Lottery" segment. The place where lives changed in seconds. Sai's phone buzzed. It was Unmukt Chand (bought by Rajasthan Royals for 65 Lakhs). "Good luck, bro. Don't forget us when you buy a Ferrari."
Sai switched off his phone. Ferrari? I just want to buy my dad a car with AC.
The Setup in Bangalore
On the TV screen, the camera panned across the ITC Gardenia hotel ballroom in Bangalore. The tables were set.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH): VVS Laxman, Tom Moody, K. Shanmugam. They looked serious.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB): Vijay Mallya (smoking a cigar), Daniel Vettori. They looked flashy.
Mumbai Indians (MI): Nita Ambani, John Wright. They looked rich.
The Name
Richard Madley, the auctioneer with the crisp British accent, adjusted his glasses. He picked up the next sheet.
"Player Number 142," Madley announced. "V. Sai Krishna. From Hyderabad. Uncapped All-Rounder. Age 17."
On the screen, Sai's stats flashed:
Role: Batting All-Rounder.
Ranji Runs: 680.
VHT Runs: 350 (Strike Rate 110).
Base Price: 10 Lakhs.
Rao stopped breathing. "10 Lakhs," Madley said. "Do I have an opening bid?"
The Battle Begins
For three seconds, no paddle went up. Those three seconds felt like three years. Did they forget? Did Laxman Sir lie?
Then, the paddle at the Sunrisers Hyderabad table went up. Tom Moody raised it casually.
"10 Lakhs from Hyderabad," Madley said. "Do I hear 15?"
Immediately, a paddle shot up from the red table. Royal Challengers Bangalore. Daniel Vettori wanted the kid who had scooped Vinay Kumar.
"15 Lakhs from Bangalore. 20?" SRH raised again. 20. RCB raised. 25. SRH. 30. RCB. 35.
Rao exhaled. "35 Lakhs... Sai, that is a 2BHK flat."
But the paddles weren't stopping. "40... 45... 50..." The speed was blinding. Madley's head was swiveling like a tennis umpire.
The Third Party
"80 Lakhs with Bangalore," Madley paused.
Suddenly, a paddle went up from the blue table. Mumbai Indians. John Wright had his notes open to the Wankhede match page.
"85 Lakhs from Mumbai Indians! New bidder."
The price crossed 1 Crore.
Rao stood up. He started pacing the small room. "One Crore? One Crore?" He looked like he was having a panic attack. Sai remained still. [SYSTEM ALERT] Heart Rate: 160 bpm. Cortisol Level: High. Analysis: Market Valuation exceeded expectations by 1000%.
The War: SRH vs RCB vs MI
1.2 Crores (SRH). 1.4 Crores (MI). 1.6 Crores (RCB).
Vijay Mallya leaned over to Vettori. He whispered something. Vettori nodded. RCB raised the paddle and kept it up. 2.0 Crores.
SRH paused. Tom Moody looked at VVS Laxman. Laxman was scribbling furiously on a notepad. They had a budget. They needed to buy overseas bowlers (Dale Steyn, Trent Boult). Spending big on an uncapped 17-year-old was risky.
But Laxman remembered the scoop. He remembered the tie match. Laxman nodded. SRH raised. 2.2 Crores.
MI dropped out.
It was now a duel. Hyderabad vs Bangalore. Just like the Vijay Hazare match.
2.4 Cr (RCB). 2.6 Cr (SRH). 2.8 Cr (RCB). 3.0 Crores. (SRH).
The TV commentators were losing it. "This is incredible!" Harsha Bhogle's voice rang out. "An uncapped 17-year-old sparking a bidding war! This is the IPL fairytale!"
The Climax
3.5 Crores (RCB). Tom Moody put his paddle down. He shook his head. It was too much. Laxman grabbed Moody's arm. He spoke intensely. He is the future. We need a local icon.
Moody hesitated. Then, he raised the paddle one last time. 4.0 Crores.
The room went silent. Madley looked at the RCB table. "4 Crores with Sunrisers Hyderabad. Bangalore? Are you out?"
Daniel Vettori looked at his laptop. Their purse was draining. Vettori put his pen down. He shook his head.
Madley raised his gavel. "Going once at 4 Crores..." "Going twice..."
Rao was holding his chest. "Sell it! Sell it!"
But wait. Another paddle? Delhi Daredevils? No. They checked their purse and put it down.(ifykyk)
"Going twice..."
Then, Laxman did something unexpected. He signaled a bid increase? No, he was just adjusting his glasses. Madley smiled. "I thought you were bidding against yourself, VVS!"
Wait, RCB raised again! 4.2 Crores. Mallya was playing games. He wanted to bleed SRH's purse.
Laxman didn't hesitate this time. Immediate raise. 4.5 Crores.
It was a statement. He is ours.
Mallya laughed and put his paddle down for good.
"Selling..." Madley brought the wooden hammer down. BAM.
"Sold to Sunrisers Hyderabad for 4.5 Crores."
The Aftermath
The silence in the Kukatpally apartment shattered. Rao let out a sound that was half-laugh, half-sob. He collapsed onto the sofa. "Four point five," he whispered. "Four point five."
Sai's mother ran out of the puja room. "What happened? Did he get selected?" "selected?" Rao laughed hysterically. "He got sold for 4.5 Crores!, 4.5Crores!!!"
Sai stared at the TV screen. V. Sai Krishna -> SRH (45,000,000 INR).
He felt numb. Ten minutes ago, he was a middle-class boy worried about the price of English Willow bats. Now, he was a multi-millionaire.
The Phone Explosion
His phone, which he had switched on, froze. Incoming calls: 45. WhatsApp messages: 999+.
First call. Coach Daniel. "You owe me a new bike," Daniel screamed into the phone. "And a house! And a gym!"
Second call. Unmukt Chand. "4.5? Dude, you went for more than Sehwag! Dinner is on you for the next ten years!"
Third call. Unknown Number. Sai picked it up. "Hello?"
"Sai?" The voice was calm, familiar. It was VVS Laxman.
The room went quiet. Rao put his ear near the phone.
"Sir!" Sai stood up instinctively.
"We stretched our budget for you," Laxman said, sounding exhausted but happy. "Tom Moody is yelling at me. He says if you don't score runs, he will deduct it from my salary."
Sai laughed nervously. "I won't let you down, Sir."
"Enjoy the moment with your parents. Tomorrow, come to the office. We need to sign the contracts. And Sai?"
"Yes, Sir?"
"Don't buy a sports car. Buy a house. Hyderabad traffic is bad anyway."
The Weight of the Tag
That night, the celebrations died down. Neighbors had come and gone with sweets. The watchman had come to take a selfie. Sai lay in his bed. He looked at the ceiling fan.
4.5 Crores. It wasn't just money. It was a target on his back. Every time he walked out to bat, people wouldn't see a 17-year-old. They would see a "4.5 Crore Player." If he failed, they would mock him. If he succeeded, they would say it's expected.