Cricket Anyone? India vs Australia

"Oh. I didn't realise. So what about that man?" she asked, pointing to a stocky Sri Lankan player on the opposite team.

"Oh, bloody hell, excuse the French. You would pick him," Les searched the score sheet, "Dhananjaya Jayasuriya. I think. Danny for short."

Madiha thought about what Les had said. It made sense. Everything else Australians talked about seemed to get shortened. She really had to concentrate on the words to get their meaning. And she didn't want to spend the next three months correcting people over her name. She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, thinking deeply.

"G'day Les, how's it going? I'm Madi. I'm pretty bloody pleased to meet you."

Les roared with laughter, "Oh, that's bloody marvellous. Rusty said you were a feisty one. Bloody good effort for a week, no worries about that. Anyway, I'd better keep an eye on the game Madi," His eyes had never completely left the game, but he turned back to watch Russell's next over. After a few balls, he commented, "Your boyfriend..."

"He's not my boyfriend."

"Your friend who's a boy then. Good bowler. Could be better. See, he doesn't get completely side-on when he releases the ball. Too stiff. Not flexible. Here, look," He handed her a pair of binoculars.

She took the glasses and focused on Russ steaming in for his next ball. Hmmm. Tasty... But Les was right. He was stiff in the back compared to Ben Stokes' fluid action. 'I wonder if he's stiff anywhere else?' she idly thought. "Can I borrow these, please?" she asked.

"Sure. No worries."

Madiha walked around the oval to a point in line with the wicket and focused on Russ's action. He definitely didn't turn side-on. She hadn't played much cricket but did understand the physics of a good bowling action. He caught the ball on his way back to his mark and started to polish the red cricket ball on his crotch. She nodded. The red stain.

He finished his over and took his hat from the umpire, then jogged down to third man where she was watching. "Hi Madiha, enjoying the game?" he puffed.

"It's Madi, and where's my hat trick?" she scolded, then smiled.

"I knew I shouldn't let Pop talk to you. Geez, what'd he say? And what happened to Madiha?" he yelled as he chased a ball that had been clipped to fine leg. He scooped it up and flung it back to the keeper, who whipped the bails off.

"HOWZAT!" the keeper yelled, and the umpire raised a finger. A loud cheer went up from Russ's team, and the unlucky batsman slowly trudged back to the pavilion. The team crowded around Dave and Russ, congratulating them on getting a much needed wicket.

Russ jogged back to his fielding position on the fence with a big smile. "I would have preferred to have been the bowler, but I'll take that." He started doing some stretches before his next over, and Madiha carefully watched him move. An idea had started to form but she needed to discuss it with an expert.

Madiha didn't get a chance to talk to Russ before he was called back to bowl. She walked back under the trees and frantically composed a WhatsApp message to Neha. 'What's the best positions for cricketers?'

A reply came back from Neha, 'And good very early morning to you. Cricket players are just men. You should know the best positions. You have tried all the Kama Sutra!'

'No. Not sex, yoga. Yes, I know the best sex positions. Russell is a bowler and needs to improve the flexibility of his back. I need suggestions from an expert!'

'So I'm a yoga expert now? I'll send you a link after I've had some breakfast.'

'Thank you! :)'

She put away her phone and wandered around the circumference of the ground under the canopy of the trees, just watching the game occasionally and the few people out walking their dogs. What she found interesting was nobody stared at her. It was like a darker-skinned woman wasn't unusual around here. She finished her circuit and sat with Les for the final overs of the innings.

Russell's team were in trouble. Russ had managed to clean bowl the other opener, and the next batsman skied another bowler to the fielder at square leg. Unfortunately for the home side, at the end of forty overs their opponent had accumulated a respectable score of three out for 127 runs.

The team trudged off the field. Madiha thought they looked hot and dejected. A couple of opportunities had gone begging, but it was what it was. Everyone went to the "Esky" to get a cold drink before they attacked the trays of triangular cut sandwiches.

Russ looked pretty depressed, sitting in the shade moping and munching on his corned beef and pickle sandwiches. Madiha sat down beside him and patted his knee and he looked up at her, surprised at the touch.

"Cheer up Russ," she said brightly, "I thought you bowled well. You got a wicket and helped with a runout. That's good."

Russ waved at the wicket, "I bowled like shit. I just couldn't get my act together today," he said morosely. He took a sip of water and looked at her, "I dunno. Some days I'm bang on the mark every time, then I have days like today where I scatter them everywhere."

"Can I offer my observations?" Madiha asked.

"Sure," he shrugged, "I'm open to any ideas."

"You are too tight in the lower back. You don't twist enough. Do you do any flexibility exercises?"

"No, not really. Just gym work," Russell admitted.

"Ok, so would you like me to teach you some yoga? It will definitely help."

Russ looked dubiously at her, "I dunno..."

"Have you ever tried yoga?"

"Yeah, once. An old girlfriend conned me into going," Russ sighed at the memory. "I didn't like it."

"Why not?" Madiha asked, curious.

"Ummm... well, I wasn't very good at it," he replied, looking very embarrassed.

"It takes some practice... Wait..." She noticed Russell was turning red, "There's more, isn't there? It's ok, I can keep a secret."

He looked down at the ground. "I was a fair bit younger, and the class was full of girls wearing tight clothes and," and he dropped his voice to a whisper, "I, umm, got a bit excited and I had to leave."

Madiha stared at him, trying not to laugh. The thought of this tall, strong athlete losing control of his dick in a class full of women was hilarious. She took a long, slow drink to get her composure back before she replied quietly, "Ok. Well, so it wasn't the yoga, it was the surroundings? And because I'm Indian and have trouble understanding your weird Aussie accent, I would like to confirm something. Did you, ummm, let's say, explode, or did you just create a large hill?"

She couldn't believe it, but he went even redder. "I can't believe I'm having this conversation with someone I've really just met. A hill. Just a very prominent hill, which was noticed by the instructor and the girls around me. I faked a cramp and left."

Madiha had to bite her bottom lip to stop herself from laughing. She took a deep breath. "Ok, so yoga is supposed to be practised with loose-fitting clothes. Most of India, except Instagram stars, do it like that. If the girls were in tight clothing, they were just showing off."

She bumped her shoulder against his arm. "I wanted to do something special for you for helping me and showing me around. Something more than just saying 'Thank you.' Come around to my apartment tomorrow night about 6 o'clock. We can spend about an hour doing some basic yoga, then I'll cook you a meal. And I promise to wear the most unsexy clothes I have." She looked up as the opposition ran onto the ground. "Where do you bat?"

Russell looked up at the wicket. "Normally at six. And that sounds pretty good." He turned and smiled at her, the red slowly fading from his face. "And forgive me for being a bit forward, but you'd have to try pretty hard not to look sexy."

It was Madiha's turn to blush.

Russ stood up, "Excuse me, I'd better get my gear. Back in a tick."

He returned quickly with his kit bag and sat down, this time much closer to Madiha. It was as if the little revelation about part of his private life and her response had broken the remaining hesitation between them. He leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek, "Thanks for coming to watch. And I'll take up your offer. I'd love to see as much of you as possible before you go home."

Madiha raised her eyebrows at that last comment but didn't say anything. She did answer an earlier question of his, "Anyway, Madi. Les said Aussies shortened everyone's name, so I'm happy with Madi. Also, what shall I cook?"

Russ slowly nodded, "Fair enough. No worries then, Madi it is. And I'm not fussed. Whatever you'd normally have will be fine."

They watched the opening batsmen walk out to the wicket. The opening bowler tore in and let it go a bit wide down the offside. Thommo just watched it go.

They sat under the trees and watched the game slowly unfold. Madiha really enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere after her hectic week. It had been a wonderful week though. She looked at Russ, who was intently watching his teammates attack the bowling. She had been hoping for a quick fuck on the way to Australia, and maybe a one night stand like she had with the black guy in Omaha. Slowly falling for an Aussie Knight wasn't something she even considered. And that Knight treating her more than just a fuck toy? Wonderful.

Russ sensed her looking at him and turned. "Hi Sunshine, how's it going? Having fun?"

She leaned into him, "Yes. It's nice and relaxing here. Why sunshine?"

He smiled and kissed her forehead, "You're beaming. And hot. Just thought I'd say that. You are, overall, fantastic. I'm so glad that idiot driver left you on the side of the road just so I could meet you."

He gingerly slid an arm around her waist, which extracted "Oooo, Rusty's got a girlfriend!" from his teammates.

"Oh, fuck off you lot. You're all jealous," he laughed.

Madiha moved closer to Russ and slid her arm around his waist. They remained like that for the rest of the game, not saying much, just the occasional yell as someone hit a good shot. But not good enough. Russell's team managed not to lose too many wickets but didn't score enough. He stood up to shake hands with opposition as they came off the field. Madiha stood up and applauded both teams for a good game.

Sanny, the Indian spin bowler, came over and shook Madiha's hand. "I'm sorry we didn't win, but it was great having an audience. I hope to see you again. Are you going to come down the pub with us?"

"It was a nice day Sanjit. I don't know what I'll be doing in the future. It will depend on work and Rusty, I guess." Madiha looked at Russ, who had just walked over. "As for going to the pub?"

"Yeah, nah, I don't think so, Sanny. I promised Madi we'd go to the beach," Russell replied as he stuffed his gear into the bag.

"Oh, ok. No worries. I'll see you at the next game, hopefully. Catch you then. Have a good one. Don't work too hard." Sanjit waved and strolled over to his car and followed his teammates to the pub.

Madiha scratched her head, "Why does everyone say not to work too hard? Am I missing something?"

"Hmm? Dunno, just something we say. Guess it means don't just work your arse off and not have some fun," Russell stood up and swung his bag over his shoulder, "I'll just say bye to Pop - Les, and we'll be off."

Les was wandering around trying to get the two captains to sign the score sheet. "It's bloody well like herding cats," he complained. He shook Madiha's hand. "Great to meet you Madi. Hope to see you again."

"Same here Les, it's been a good day. Bye!"

Russ went to say goodbye to his grandfather, but Les jerked his head towards the change room. "Need a hand with some gear. Can you give me a sec?"

Russ nodded, "No worries Pop, can do. Back in a sec Madi." He followed Les into the room and looked around, "I thought everything was away. What's up?"

Les leaned towards Russ and said in a low voice, "Rusty, mate, you've really brought home some rippers in the past and not in a good way. Madi, she's not bad. I'd like to see her around a bit more if you catch my drift?"

Russ nodded, "Yeah, no, I was sort of thinking the same."

"Good," said Les emphatically, "see ya on."

Russ waved goodbye and walked back to his car, Madiha beside him. "I should have asked earlier. I guess you're not going to the beach like that?" he asked, nodding at her white outfit.

"No, I was hoping to change first. I wasn't sure what was appropriate for the beach. What about you?" Madiha tentatively reached out and gently grasped Russell's free hand.

"I've chucked my bathers in the car along with a couple of large beach towels - one's for you, but we can nip back to your place and you can get changed into whatever you're comfortable in." Russ squeezed her hand in response to the gentle touch. "You up for some takeaway for dinner? Nothing fancy."

"No worries, takeaway sounds bloody good." Madiha laughed out loud at how absurd what she just said sounded. "Yes, go past my place and you can get changed also. If you want..."

"Yeah, might just do that. Not a fan of getting changed in the dunny - public toilet. I really need to focus on my speech, but you're such an easy person to talk to."

Madiha furrowed her brow. "Thanks for the compliment. I think... Why dunny?"

Russ shrugged as he opened the car. "Dunno. One of those little mysteries Google will know the answer to, I'm sure."

Russ shot out of the car park, and the stragglers waved as they left. "Okey dokey, your place, then St Kilda. I'm warning you now - it will be packed."

Madiha flicked her hand dismissively in the air. "I'm from India. I'm used to crowds."

Russell weaved his way back to her apartment using a different series of streets. He provided a running commentary on where they were and what was in the area. Madiha was fascinated with the architecture and the leafy tree-lined roads. "Is all of Melbourne like this?" she asked.

"No, these are the older, really expensive areas. Once you get more than about 15k's out, it changes. Not good or bad mostly, just different."

Madiha had tried to follow Russ's progress on her phone's map but gave up and just looked out the windows at the changing view. Soon, they arrived back outside her apartment. "Come on up. You can change in the bathroom if you want to. I won't take long."

Russell quickly grabbed his beach bag and followed. He didn't need a second invitation.

Bree brightly greeted them at reception and raised her eyebrows when Russell followed Madiha into the lift. 'Bloody hell, she's a quick worker. Good on her!' she thought, scratching her ear.

Madiha was pretty excited at the thought of visiting the beach. Bangalore was a long way from the ocean, and her previous visit to New Jersey didn't allow much time to go swimming. Omaha was in the middle of nowhere. The beach on 'Bondi Rescue' looked great but the water was pretty rough. She hoped St Kilda beach was the same but the water was calmer.

They left the lift and Madiha quickly opened her door. Russ wryly noticed that she didn't have an issue with the lock anymore - if she ever had a problem in the first place. Her earlier 'problem' did look rather contrived, but he didn't care. He probably would have done something similar to invite her back to his place.

Madiha quickly disappeared into her bedroom, and Russell turned into the bathroom. He stripped out of his cricket gear and tossed on a pair of board shorts and a t-shirt. He heard Madiha's door open, so he stuffed his whites into the bag and stepped out into the living area. Madiha had her back to him, looking out over the bay through the glass patio doors. He was a bit disappointed to see she was wearing a baggy blue and white striped shirt, a pair of knee-length denim shorts and sandals. "Righty-o let's go. Are you ok getting those wet, or do you have a change?"

"Oh, it's fine. This is what all good Indian women wear swimming and what the hell are you wearing??? Oh my God, really??? Is that normal???"

Madiha had been looking over the blue water of Port Phillip Bay and turned, smiling, to greet Russ. She was confronted by a man wearing a bright blue t-shirt with a surfing Pokemon Squirtle on it, multi-coloured check, nearly knee-length shorts and a pair of black crocs on his feet. She doubled over laughing when she saw each check box of the shorts had alternating pictures of the 1960's TV Joker and a stylised picture of a dog with a musical note coming out of its ass.

"What's so funny?" asked Russ, confused at her reaction.

Madiha just pointed to his shorts, giggling, "The dog's farting on the Joker!"

He looked down. "Well, yes. Yes he is. He deserves it. Shall we go, you little gigglepot?"

Bree looked up and sniggered as they got out of the lift. "Have fun at the beach!"

"How did you know we were going to the beach?" Madiha asked.

"The Mambo dog boardies. They're pretty cool! It was a fair guess that's where you're going," she replied, trying to stifle a bout of giggles.

The two got into Russell's car and drove off in yet another direction. Madiha had seen more of Melbourne in a week than she saw of Omaha in her whole stay. She had an adventurous spirit and she was enjoying the guided tour and, being honest with herself, the company. She glanced over at her driver, who seemed to know all the back streets of Melbourne.

He sensed her looking, and winked, "Nearly there. May need to walk for a bit. Hopefully, I can get a park fairly close. Too hot to muck about walking."

They had turned onto a road running parallel with the bay. Madiha could see glimpses of the water which looked very calm, almost like a lake. Kitesurfers were skimming over the water, and further out small yachts were bouncing across the surface. People were walking or riding their bikes along the path adjacent to the beach, and kids were chasing their dogs over the grassed areas. For someone that had never spent much time at the beach, it was a very idyllic scene.

Russell's head was like it was on a swivel, trying to scan for a car park, "Thought it'd be a bit busy. Everyone hit's the beach when it's like this. I'll go a bit further. Might be lucky and grab a spot if someone leaves for dinner."

Madiha didn't mind. She'd opened her window and inhaled deeply. The smell of the sea caressed her senses. She sighed deeply and said, "I think I'm starting to understand 'Don't work too hard' when you have this to look forward to. Why would you stay at work?"

Russell nodded in agreement, then swerved into a parking area and raced towards a nearly vacant space before other circling drivers spotted the departing car. He smiled smugly at his achievement. "You're good luck, Madi. I never get a spot so close to the beach. Carn, I'll grab our stuff and zip across the road. I need to hit the water soon."

The beach was packed. Nearly every square inch had been claimed by somebody's towel or shelter. Children were racing between the gaps playing some sort of game, semi-naked backpackers and locals were frying themselves in the intense sun, and there were so many people in the water. Russell expertly picked his way through the crowd looking for a piece of sand. "Everyone parks their butt right at the entrance to the beach. We'll head a bit further away," he explained, heading to a spot that was slightly less crowded and mostly occupied by families.

Madiha looked around. There was a surprising number of sub-continental families at the beach. Little kids running around being kids, older female children and young adults in similar dress to Madiha, men strutting around in tight shorts, a few more socially relaxed women in typical Australian swimwear, but watching and judging over them all - the Matriarchs. Madiha could spot these holders of family tradition a mile away, and they were exactly the sort of person she wanted to stay well away from. They stood on the beach completely covered in their traditional garb, eyes narrowed, just watching for any slight intrusion into their domain.