After the “Mayhem in Mohali,” it felt like the universe was writing the perfect fairy-tale story. A World Cup win on home soil was inevitable.

I watched that game with two of my closest friends and teammates, Anuraag and Sameer, we were ecstatic. The dopamine rush was unparalleled.

I ran to my room and told my dad, “Pack your bags. We are going to watch India win the World Cup”. With an extraordinarily impulsive and passionate cricket-loving father like mine, the next day, we had booked:

• Flight Tickets to Mumbai

• Match tickets for India vs West Indies in Mumbai

• Flight Tickets to Kolkata (Finals Venue)

• 2 Days Hotel in Kolkata

• Match tickets for the finals at Eden Gardens (That's how optimistic/deluded we were)
  

The Mohali game's absolute adrenaline made us believe; all our logical reasoning went out of the park. Purely raw emotions led to our functioning.

This day, that year, we were in Mumbai heading to the Home Of Cricket. We saw the great Wankhede Stadium distantly amidst the beautiful strip of Marine Drive, placed at the heart of the cricket capital within the city, Colaba. The cricket gymkhanas, Azad Maidan, Oval Maidan, CCI, Brabourne Cricket Stadium, there lies the king of them all, the mighty Wankhede.

There is something magical about the stadium, so many epic memories. -The 2011 World Cup Final -Sachin's Farewell Test -India vs Australia test in 2004 -India vs Australia ODI in 2007 -and many others.

We had not watched live cricket for at least 15 years. We made our way through the sea of the crowd and sat down like two kids, in denial of our collective impulsiveness. Watching the Indian team warm-up, the childhood memories and the glory days of my dad and I driving to Sharjah Cricket Stadium to watch the Indian team came rushing back. All of a sudden, I was eight again.

Disappointed that we lost the toss and were put to bat. In the T20 format, chasing always gives the opponent a clear game plan as they know what needs to be done to cross the line.

After a semi-decent start by the local boys Rohit and Rahane, in walked Virat Kohli. Taking his form from the Pakistan and Australia game, he delivered yet again.

From being 48 (32) in the 17th over to an undefeated 89* (47), he was slowly building his innings from a strike rate of 120 to 190, showing that he can deliver, despite batting first or chasing—proper cricketing shots on display, elegant and effortless. During the innings break, I recalled his innings through highlights on the big screen. Watching him bat made me want to pick up a bat again. I had forgotten that feeling. I knew I had to play again, but at this point, my mind was only trying to focus on embracing the experience of live cricket after over a decade and a half.

I quickly refocused my energy back to the game while the boys walked in.

Momentum was on our side. With 192 on the board, we felt confident. We get Gayle early, and it's our game.

Bumrah walks in during the 2nd over. The first ball cleaned him up, and Gayle has gone. The crowd has lost the plot. Our decision of coming seems as right as ever. Hi fives in the air, Wankhede had erupted at The Universe Boss's early departure.

After getting Samuels shortly after, the game was indeed in our hands now.

But the universe has a way of bantering you. We've all had those days where the stars aren't aligned no matter what you do. You learn that fairy-tales don't exist in sport. Well, not always.

Following that wicket, it was a forgettable game. We witnessed something any cricket fan would dread to experience live. Both massive wickets had been overturned because of overstepping, no ball called, batsman called back.

When you're at the ground, and the umpire raises his fingers, you forget everything. You are pumped, celebrating and hugging random people, fist and chest-bumping, sharing the adrenaline, to have it all come crashing down when you see the batsman go back in the middle because the bowler overstepped.

Simmons on 18, caught by Bumrah at short third man, bowled by Ashwin.

And Simmons on 50 caught by Ashwin at extra cover, bowled by Hardik Pandya.

He scored an undefeated 82 and was declared Man of The Match. Talk about rubbing salt on the wound.

I wish technology hadn't evolved so much in sport at times like these, but when you're on the flip side of the decision, the hypocrite within you couldn't disagree more. Such is the duality of sport. When things are your way, it's well and good but if not, blame it on anything external, in this case, technology.

When Charles and Simmons were settled, Dhoni gives the ball to Virat. He bowled a terrible ball, got whacked straight behind him, and Sharma held on to a pretty routine catch to make our experience even better. Not too many people can brag about seeing a Virat 50 and a wicket on the same day.

In the 18th over, Bumrah bowled three consecutive dot balls, giving us hope. West Indies now needed about 32 in 14. After that, the next ball was dispatched, and one of the best fielders in Indian cricket history, Ravindra Jadeja, almost pulled off a blinder. The fickle mistress luck belonged to the West Indies, though. His foot touched the rope while taking the catch, and despite the relaying, it was a six.

The momentum shifted after that, and just a few moments later,

Andre Russell hits the winning six, and the daunting memories of Wankhede come rushing back. Visuals of M.S.Dhoni's winning six were quickly replaced by:

• Flintoff removing his shirt and running around our turf

• The 2006 England Test (Rahul Dravid's 100th Test)

• 2012 England test

• India vs South Africa Test in 2000.

• Now we add one more to this list.
  

We walked to Leopold Cafe at the heart of Colaba Causeway to drown our misery in their massive beer towers. We sat next to a bunch of lads and overheard them whining about coming all the way from Delhi. We consoled and told them, "We've come from Dubai." Our misery instantly uplifted them.

Just like the days in school, when you'd flunk and feel the world has sunk beneath you, but the news of your best friend failing makes everything feel normal again.

Deflated and heartbroken, we started analysing the cost of this venture. The guilt, negativity, and everything else around crept in. We were in a dilemma, should we go to Kolkata? We have everything booked. Watching England vs West Indies didn't seem enticing enough, but we had everything booked. Why the hell not? It's a World Cup Final.

It was the typical brain vs heart battle. We had finally decided.

Please subscribe and stay tuned to find out what happened next.

Comment below and let me know which way you think we went. The heart or the brain? Where do we go? Eden Gardens to watch England vs West Indies or back home to Dubai? P.S. On this day, 5 years ago, my dad and I were in Wankhede, watching this unfold. I dedicate this article to my father and thank him for making me fall in love with the game from an early age, supporting my impulsive side, and sharing these epic memories with me. We look back and have a crazy story to tell despite the result.