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Thank you for choosing to read this story

I really hope you guys are just as excited about the new posting schedule as I am, so here's the first mid week update.

Here's a video of MSD talking about balancing life as an international cricketer and family time

https://youtu.be/1RN7QjTIaKE

The above song is 'Teri Baari Hai' from the movie 'Mary Kom'

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~~~~~~~

Siya has officially met her teammates from the Indian Team.

What will be the reaction of the rest of her family to her big news?

~~~~~~~

After Siya's first meet with her team, Mahi invited their brothers for a small get together at his house.

No one except for Dravid knew of Siya's selection and Mahi had decided to inform everyone about the news in person.

Dada, Sachin Paaji and Virat arrived in the morning followed by Jammy Bhai, Yuvi and Sonu arrived in the afternoon.

They all tried to ask Sakshi the reason for the get together, but she simply replied saying that it was their Mahi's news to share.

Once they all sat down together, Dada asks, "Mahiya, ab toh bata de kya baat hai?" (Mahiya at least now tell us what the matter is?)

Virat immediately adds, "And don't you dare say that you are retiring now."

Mahi asks, "Where did my retirement come from?"

Sachin Paaji replies, "Mahi, you've been on a sabbatical for months now. It's only logical for Cheeku to worry about this. But to be perfectly honest, even I am extremely curious because Sakshi only said that it was your news to share."

Jammy Bhai says, "Calm down all of you. Mahi is not retiring, at least not right now. If you will keep quiet only then will he be able to tell you."

Yuvi asks, "Bhai, do you already know what Mahi wants to tell us?"

Dada gives his best friend a look, so Jammy explains, "Mahi didn't tell me anything before, if that's what you want to know."

Sonu says, "Mahi, just tell us what the matter is."

Mahi replies, "Thank you Sonu. Dada, I promise I never told anyone and Jammy Bhai knows only because BCCI asked him to be present at the trials."

Sachin Paaji looks confused and asks, "If BCCI is involved then why does Dadi not know about it?"

Mahi replies, "Because it was the department which handles Women's cricket was involved and Dada has just become the BCCI president."

Sonu seems to understand what Mahi had hinted at and asks, "You're not messing with us right?"

Yuvi looks confused and says, "But he hasn't even told us what happened."

Dada also catches on Sonu's line of thought and asks, "Where is Siya?"

Just then Siya enters the room with a tray in her hands holding a few glasses of juice and replies, "Present Dada"

Mahi takes the tray from his sister and places it on the table himself.

Dada immediately hugs his 'Little Mahi' and says, "Congratulations Bachha. I'm so proud of you."

Sachin Paaji is next to hug Siya and he adds, "Well I'm really glad that you are going to break my record soon."

Sonu hugs his best friend and says, "Yaar Mahi Bhai, aap toh chha gaye ek dum." (Mahi Bhai, you've outdone yourself.)

Mahi replies, "Maine kahaan kuch kiya hai (I haven't even done anything)? It's all Siya's hard work."

Jammy says, "Don't sell yourself short Mahi. We all know how hard you have also worked with her for this day."

Siya adds, "Ha Bhaiya, aap nahi hote toh main yeh din thodi dekh paati." (Yes Bhaiya, if it wasn't for you I wouldn't have been able to see this day.)

Mahi simply responds by pulling his sister in for a hug, remembering the day he had met her for the first time.

Yuvi interjects, "Koi bataayega bhi ki hua kya hai?" (Will someone tell us what happened?)

Virat adds, "I'm also confused right now."

Dada slaps his forehead while Jammy Bhai replies, "Siya ka selection ho gaya hai Indian team me (Siya got selected for theIndian team). She is going with the team to England for the tri-series in December."

Yuvi and Virat immediately perk up at the news and sandwich Siya in the middle, congratulating her continuously.

Siya whines, "Thank you par ab chhod bhi do." (Thank you but leave menow.)

When none of the boys move an inch, Mahi sternly says, "Ab bas ho gaya. Chhodo Gudiya ko." (That's enough now. Letgo of Gudiya.)

Virat immediately leaves Siya and moves away, while Yuvi replies, "Ae Bihari, kitna dara ke rakha hai tune mere Rabbit ko." (Ae Bihar/Someonebelonging to the state of Bihar, how have you terrified my Rabbit so much.)

Mahi retorts, "Kam se kam usne meri baat toh sun li (At least he listened tome), unlike someone else."

Yuvi was about to say something when Dada interjects, "No fighting boys. Yuvi, chhod de bachhi ko ab. Pareshaan ho jaayegi bechari. (Yuvi let go of the poor kid now. She'll get annoyed.)" 

Yuvi leaves Siya whining, "Dada yaar, aap hamesha Mahi ki side lete ho." (Dada, you always take Mahi's side)

Siya rubs her cheeks and retorts, "Bhaiya aapki tarah mujhe apni daadi nahi chubhate. Kabhi toh shave kar liya karo." (Bhaiya doesn't poke me with his beard like you. You should shave more often.)

Everyone bursts out laughing after hearing Siya's complaint, while Yuvi grumbles about how nobody loves him.

Sachin Paaji takes pity on Yuvi and side hugs him, which results in Yuvi giving a teasing look to Mahi.

Mahi pouts for a moment, before he smirks and pulls Dada in for a hug.

Eventually they all talk about their experiences in England, while giving Siya some tips on what all she would need during her stay there.

~~~~~~~

A few days before her departure, Siya was getting her luggage thoroughly checked by her Bhabhi, who wanted to make sure that the young girl could survive the unpredictable weather of England.

Sakshi checked all the clothes that had been packed because she was worried about Siya falling sick.

Mahi was busy entertaining his daughter, but he couldn't stop smiling as he watched his wife act like a mother hen for their little sister.

Ziva was delighted to have her father back from the army and often fought with her Bui about who would sleep next to Mahi almost every night.

Siya soon has enough and says, "Bhabhi, I'll be fine. I'm not going alone so my team will be with me."

Mahi adds, "Yeah Sakshi, just relax a little. I've met most of her teammates before and trust me, they'll take good care of Gudiya. Siya will be fine."

Sakshi retorts, "You are telling me to relax? You and I both know that you will be the one panicking more than me by the time Siya has to leave."

Mahi raises his hands in surrender and says, "Won't disagree with you on that, but you can relax for now."

Sakshi sighs and replies, "Okay fine, I'll leave this now. But Siyu, if you feel even a little bit sick then please tell someone. Don't be like your idiot brother who will never tell people when he's not feeling alright."

Mahi complains, "Hey, that was one time. Let go of it already."

Sakshi retorts, "What about all those times when you played with some or the other injury without informing anyone before?"

https://youtu.be/WdoTbngvEH8

(It's really unbelievable how much this man has willingly suffered through and sacrificed over the years.)

Mahi tries to form a reply but is left speechless, while Siya responds in a teasing voice, "Bhabhi's got you there Bhaiya."

Ziva interrupts, hugging her aunt and says, "I'll miss you Bui."

Siya hugs her niece back and replies, "I'll miss you too princess."

The hug soon turns into a group hug with Sakshi and Mahi also joining in.

~~~~~~~

On the day of the team's departure, the Dhoni family arrived at the international airport in Mumbai, where the team had decided to meet before going together to board their flight to London.

Siya decided to introduce her Bhaiya and Bhabhi to the seniormost players of her team, so she went looking for her captain first.

Luckily for her, Mithali and Jhulan were standing together discussing about something near the decided assembly point.

Siya pulled her Bhabhi towards them, while her brother followed with his daughter in his arms.

Jhulan spots their newest player and informs Mithali about Siya coming towards them, before turning her around.

Mithali smiles and says, "Hello Siya. I hope you didn't face any problems while coming here."

Siya replies, "Mithali Di, Bhaiya knows this airport too well, so we didn't have any problems. I just wanted you both to meet my Bhaiya and Bhabhi."

Jhulan smiles and says, "We would love to meet them officially. And before you both say anything, I assure you that we'll take good care of Siya."

Sakshi points to her husband jokingly and replies, "You need to tell him that."

Mahi shoots his wife a look and retorts, "Says the woman who was worried about Siya catching a cold."

Mithali chuckles and says, "You both don't have to worry about Siya. We'll all take good care of her. Besides I doubt she'll go out much because Harman and Smriti have made her their video gaming partner."

Sakshi points to her husband and replies, "Again blame him for her video game obsession. Don't know why they both are so crazy about those games."

Jhulan says, "We've been trying to figure out the same with Harman and Smriti for a few years now. Luckily none of the others are as obsessed as those two."

Sakshi jokingly replies, "Well now you've got one more in that crazy mix."

Mithali smiles and says, "I'm sure we all will still have a lot of fun. The first international tour is always special."

Mahi smiles and replies, "Agreed. Regardless of the result, it's always special."

Some of the other players also come and meet the Dhoni family, assuring them that they will all take good care of little Siya.

The team manager soon announces that the team needs to start moving to board their flight on time.

Sakshi and Ziva hug Siya and wish her luck, before leaving the brother sister duo alone to talk.

Just before leaving, Siya looks up to her brother and says, "I promise that I will make you proud Bhaiya."

Mahi looks at her and says, "Let me tell you something very important. You are going to represent your country now. Country should always come first, so you need to ensure that you always give your best on the field for India. As long as you keep giving your best for India, I will always be proud of you."

Siya then hugs her brother tightly, before going to join her team.

Mahi watches his little sister leaving for her first international tour with teary eyes.

Sakshi notices that her husband was feeling overwhelmed, so she holds his arm as a silent sign of support.

Siya turns back and waves one last time, before going further inside the airport with the rest of her team.

(Imagine something like this)

~~~~~~~

The three teams were all set to play each other twice before the top two teams would play in the final.

Siya was named as a substitute for the first two matches against England and Australia respectively.

She did come on the ground a couple of times as a substitute fielder and made an impact with what little time she spent on the field.

India lost both the matches and one of the openers had sprained her wrist in the second match.

The coach was sitting in the team room with the senior most players, as they all tried to figure out the best playing eleven combination for the next match against England.

Mithali says, "We have a pretty good team but now we need an opener."

The coach replies, "We have players who could play as openers, but unfortunately none of them are regular openers."

Harman asks, "How about we take a look at the player profiles and check who has most experience as an opener?"

Jhulan seems to be in deep thought, so Mithali asks, "Jhulan, what are you thinking?"

Harman and the coach also look towards the senior most bowler in anticipation.

Jhulan says, "I have an idea for our problem, but it could be risky."

Harman replies, "Paaji, aap idea batao toh. Risk ki chinta baad me karenge." (Paaji, you just tell us your idea. We'll worry about the risk later.)

Jhulan takes a deep breath and says, "We have a player that has opened for her team in the domestic matches."

Mithali asks, "Jhulan, tu kiski baat kar rahi hai?" (Jhulan, who are you talkingabout?)

Jhulan replies, "Siya. She can literally bat at any position."

The coach and Harman check her profile and agree with Jhulan's idea.

Mithali looks sceptical and says, "Are you sure this is a good idea? She hasn't played any international matches and we are playing at Lords."

Jhulan replies, "Mithu, she has to start somewhere. I know that we brought her in as a power hitter, but I don't think she will mind batting up the order if the team needs her to."

Harman adds, "Mithali Didi, try karne me kya hi problem hai. Ek match ki hi toh baat hai. Next match ke liye we'll have our main opener back." (Mithali Didi, there's no harm in trying. It's just for one match anyways. From the next match we'll have our main opener back.)

Mithali sighs and says, "You both make some really good points. We'll try Siya in the next match as an opener. Let's just inform Smriti beforehand because she will have an additional responsibility of helping Siya get used to the conditions here."

Harman replies, "I'll just call her here."

Unexpectedly Smriti doesn't pick up her phone, despite calling her a few times and Harman starts getting a little worried.

Jhulan notices this and says, "Let's just go to her room and talk to her there."

The coach leaves to inform the board about their decision regarding the stand in opener for one match.

~~~~~~~

Meanwhile in Smriti's room, Siya and Smriti were playing a bike racing game, without paying much attention to their surroundings.

Harman enters the room and is angry upon seeing how immersed the two were in their video game.

Mithali and Jhulan shake their heads upon seeing how neither one of them noticed people entering the room.

Harman pauses the game with the spare remote and Smriti immediately snaps her neck to look in her direction.

Smriti says, "Oh hi Harry Di. Aap kab aaye room me (When did you come in the room)?" 

Harman crosses her arms and asks in a stern voice, "Where is your phone?"

Smriti looks like a student caught cheating by her teacher and softly replies, "On the bedside table."

Harman asks, "Why do you keep a phone when you don't want to pick it up?"

Siya interjects, "Sorry Harman Di, woh I was getting bored alone, so Smriti Di offered to play with me. We didn't realise that the phone was ringing."

Smriti says, "I'm sorry. I should have been more responsible. Anyways, why were you looking for me?"

Mithali replies, "We wanted to talk to you about something. Siya, you can also stay because it's related to you."

Siya was about to leave the room so that they could talk privately, but then she sits back down upon hearing her captain's words.

Jhulan starts, "So you both know that our opener is injured for the next match and you also know that we have been trying to see who can play in place of her."

Siya and Smriti both nod, so Harman continues, "We have an idea to solve this problem."

At this point Siya looks confused, while Smriti seems to be catching on.

Mithali says, "Siya, you will be playing tomorrow as an opener with Smriti. You have opened the innings for your state team and we feel that you are our best bet. Will you be comfortable playing as an opener in the next match?"

Siya replies, "If the team needs me to play as an opener, then I have no problem."

Harman claps her hands and says, "Well then, you two better go to bed early because we have a match tomorrow."

The girls nod and get back to their game, before everyone goes to their respective rooms to rest up for the next day.

~~~~~~~

Meanwhile in India, a man is excited about completing all his professional commitments before the scheduled time.

He has a quick conversation with his wife and decides to take the next flight to London.

Luckily for him, his best friends are just as crazy as him, so they insist on joining him for his last minute trip.

~~~~~~~

So Siya is finally going to play her first international match.

Who do you think are the three people that are on their way to London right now?

Let me know what you guys think ✍🏻

Please vote ⭐