The wind at the AMI Stadium in Christchurch was crisp, carrying the bite of the approaching Antarctic winter, but the atmosphere inside the Indian dressing room was burning hot. It was time for the T20 International.
The format was still young—it had only been two years since its inception—but after the inaugural World Cup win and the rise of the IPL, it had become the heartbeat of the new India.
MS Dhoni stood in the centre of the room, the team sheet in his hand. The squad was a terrifying blend of the T20 World Cup heroes and the established stars.
Sehwag, Gambhir, Siddanth, Rohit, Yuvraj, Raina, Dhoni, Yusuf Pathan, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan, Zaheer.
It was a batting lineup designed to cause nightmares.
"We know the conditions," Dhoni said, his voice calm. "Small boundaries. Flat deck. But New Zealand won the toss and they've put us in. They think they can chase whatever we set."
He looked at Siddanth.
"Sid. You're batting at three today. One down."
Siddanth looked up, surprised. Usually, Raina or Rohit took that spot in T20s.
"I want you to have time," Dhoni explained. "If we get a good start, keep the momentum. If we lose an early one, stabilise and then explode. You have the full license. Prove you own this format."
Siddanth nodded, strapping on his pads. His mind buzzed with anticipation. T20 was his natural habitat.
---
Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir walked out to a roar from the capacity crowd. The two Delhi boys, the fire and the ice, started in typical fashion.
Gambhir was surgical, piercing the offside field. Sehwag was brutal, slashing over point.
They raced to 50 in the 7th over.
But in the 8th over, facing the spin of Daniel Vettori, Gambhir tried to go inside-out over cover. He didn't get the elevation. The ball was swallowed by Ross Taylor.
Gautam Gambhir: Out for 32.
India: 58 for 1. Overs: 8.0.
The PA system blared: "Next batsman... Siddanth Deva!"
Siddanth walked out. The cool Christchurch air hit his face. He adjusted his gloves, marking his center.
At the non-striker's end, Virender Sehwag was leaning on his bat, chewing gum, looking as relaxed as a man waiting for a bus. He was on 25.
Siddanth walked up to him to touch gloves.
"Strategy, Viru-pa?" Siddanth asked.
Sehwag grinned, a wide, carefree expression.
"Strategy?" Sehwag laughed. "Look at the score. 58 in 8. We are slow. The boundary is small. The wind is good."
He tapped Siddanth's chest with his bat handle.
"Give it everything, boy. Don't care about the score. Don't care about getting out. Just play how you want. I will anchor. You hit. Show them."
It was the ultimate permission. The most destructive opener in history was telling him to go wild.
Siddanth nodded. The strategist stepped back. The instinct stepped forward.
License to kill.
---
Over 9: Jacob Oram
Siddanth was on strike. First ball.
Oram, the tall medium-pacer, bowled a length ball.
Siddanth didn't look to get his eye in.
He shuffled across his stumps, went down on one knee, and scooped the ball.
It wasn't a fine-leg tickle. It was a full-blooded ramp over the wicketkeeper's head.
The ball sailed over the sightscreen.
SIX.
"Bang!" Danny Morrison screamed on commentary. "Welcome to the crease! First ball, and he sends it into the car park! That is audacious!"
Over 10: Jeetan Patel
Spin.
Siddanth used his feet.
He stepped out to the first ball. He didn't hit it straight. He hit it inside-out, over extra cover. SIX.
The next ball, he stayed in his crease. He reverse-swept it. Hard. It rocketed past point. FOUR.
The next ball, he swept it traditional. FOUR.
He was on 20 off 4 balls. Sehwag, at the other end, was just laughing.
Over 12: Tim Southee
Southee, young and quick, tried to bounce him.
Siddanth swiveled. The power generation from his core was immense.
He pulled it flat. It hit the advertising boards at deep mid-wicket with a sickening thud. FOUR.
Southee tried the yorker. Siddanth opened the face, his wrists soft and pliable. He steered it between the keeper and short third man. FOUR.
He reached his 50 in 16 balls.
He didn't raise his bat. He just punched gloves with Sehwag and took his stance again.
"He is not stopping!" Ravi Shastri bellowed. "He is in a trance! Every part of the ground is under threat. He is hitting 360 degrees! Vettori is changing the field every ball, and Deva is finding the gap every ball!"
Over 15: The Carnage
Iain O'Brien, the pacer, came on.
Siddanth was on 68.
Ball 1: Smashed over long-on. SIX.
Ball 2: Smashed over long-off. SIX.
Ball 3: O'Brien went wide. Siddanth reached out, one hand coming off the bat, and sliced it over point. SIX.
Ball 4: A yorker. Siddanth shuffled and scooped it over fine leg. SIX.
The crowd was going delirious. 24 runs off 4 balls.
He moved to 92.
Over 17
Kyle Mills.
Siddanth was on 94.
Mills bowled a slower ball. Siddanth picked it. He waited. He waited an eternity.
Then, he unleashed a baseball-style swat down the ground.
The ball flew into the top tier.
CENTURY.
100 off 35 balls.
The first-ever T20 International Century by an Indian.
The stadium erupted. Even the Kiwi fans were standing.
Sehwag ran down the pitch and hugged him. "I told you to hit! I didn't tell you to kill them!" Sehwag roared, laughing.
In the commentary box, Sunil Gavaskar was on his feet.
"Unbelievable! Absolutely unbelievable! We are witnessing the evolution of batting right here in Christchurch! He has power, he has finesse, and he has shots that aren't in the coaching manual! Ladies and gentlemen, look at this boy! India has got itself a new Kapil Dev! An all-rounder who can change the world in an hour!"
"A new Kapil Dev!" Shastri echoed. "Maybe even more! This is the future! This is the prototype for the modern cricketer!"
Siddanth didn't stop at 100.
He went berserk.
He hit Southee for two more sixes in the 19th over.
He was finally dismissed in the last over, caught on the boundary, trying to hit his 14th six.
Siddanth Deva: 134 runs (44 balls).
12 Fours. 13 Sixes.
Strike Rate: 304.5.
He walked off to a guard of honour from the New Zealand players. Brendon McCullum patted him on the back. "Too good, mate. Too good."
India finished on a monolithic 241 for 4.
It was a score that was almost psychologically impossible to chase.
The Second Innings
In the dressing room, the mood was ecstatic. But Dhoni was calm.
"242 is a mountain," Dhoni said. "But they will swing hard. They have McCullum, Ryder, Guptill. If they come off, this ground is small enough. We need wickets."
He threw the ball to Siddanth.
"You broke their spirit with the bat. Now break their stumps."
Siddanth took the new ball.
The speed demon within him was itching to join the party.
Over 1:
Brendon McCullum was on strike. He had to hit every ball.
Siddanth ran in. The explosive leap at the crease triggered.
152kph.
McCullum stepped out, trying to smash the first ball for six.
Siddanth saw the charge. He shortened the length. A vicious bouncer aimed at the nose.
McCullum was hurried. He hooked blindly.
The ball kissed the glove and lobbed gently to Dhoni.
WICKET 1.
First ball duck for the Kiwi captain. The chase was effectively dead right there.
Over 3:
Jesse Ryder tried to take Siddanth on. He swung hard at a length ball.
Siddanth had rolled his fingers. The 110kph slower ball.
Ryder was through the shot before the ball pitched.
The stumps were rattled.
WICKET 2.
New Zealand was 20 for 2. They were swinging blindly, trying to keep up with a required rate of 12.
Martin Guptill and Ross Taylor tried to rebuild, but the pressure was immense.
They attacked the other bowlers, hitting a few boundaries, but the asking rate kept climbing.
Dhoni brought Siddanth back in the middle overs to kill the game.
Over 12:
Ross Taylor was on 30. He was the last hope.
Siddanth ran in. He bowled the Wobble Seam.
Taylor tried to cut. The ball jagged back, cramped him for room, and took the inside edge.
The ball crashed into the stumps.
WICKET 3.
Over 14:
Jacob Oram. The big hitter.
Siddanth bowled a perfect, reverse-swinging yorker at 153kph.
Oram's feet didn't move. He was plumb LBW.
WICKET 4.
Siddanth finished his spell.
4 overs, 0 maidens, 24 runs, 4 wickets.
In a game where 240 was scored, he went at 6 an over and took 4 wickets.
The New Zealand tail collapsed. They were trying to hit sixes just to save face.
Harbhajan and Yusuf Pathan cleaned up the rest.
New Zealand All Out: 119.
India Won by 122 runs.
It was a demolition. A statement. India hadn't just won; they had announced that they were the new kings of T20.
---
The chilly night air of Christchurch was filled with the chants of Indian fans.
Ravi Shastri stood at the podium, looking genuinely excited.
Shastri: "What a match. What a performance. I am running out of superlatives. Ladies and gentlemen, the Man of the Match, for a historic century and four wickets... Siddanth Deva!"
Siddanth walked up. He had the match ball in one pocket and his bat in hand. He looked calm, but his eyes were shining.
Shastri: "Siddanth, 134 off 44 balls. The first Indian to score a T20I hundred. And then 4 wickets. Is this the perfect game?"
Siddanth smiled, wiping sweat from his brow. "It felt good, Ravi-bhai. Viru-pa gave me great advice before I walked in. He told me not to look at the scoreboard, just to express myself. That took the pressure off. I just watched the ball and hit it."
Shastri: "You were hitting it 360 degrees. That scoop off Oram, the reverse sweep off Vettori. Is this something you practice?"
"A lot," Siddanth nodded. "The game is evolving. You can't just have one area. You need to access the whole ground. I practice those shots in the nets every day."
Shastri: "And the bowling? McCullum first ball?"
"We knew they had to come hard. The plan was to hit the deck hard and surprise them with pace. Getting Brendon first ball made everything easier."
Shastri: "Sunil Gavaskar upstairs called you the 'New Kapil Dev'. How does that sit with you?"
Siddanth paused. He looked into the camera. He knew the weight of that name.
"Kapil Paaji is a legend," Siddanth said respectfully. "There is only one Kapil Dev. I'm just Siddanth. I just want to win games for India. If I can contribute with bat and ball, that's all I want."
Shastri: "Brilliantly said. Enjoy the moment, son. You've made history today."
Siddanth walked back to his team.
Dhoni was waiting. He handed Siddanth a stump.
"Keep it," Dhoni said. "First hundred. Special."
"Thanks, Skipper."
Rohit Sharma ran over, grabbing him in a headlock. "134?! Are you insane? You've set the bar so high I'm going to need a ladder!"
"Your turn next," Siddanth grinned.
"Oh, it's coming," Rohit promised.
As the team took a victory lap, waving to the fans, Siddanth looked up at the night sky.
The T20 World Cup in England was coming up in June 2009.
The 2011 World Cup was in India.
The script was perfect. And he was the one writing it.