The Team

Delhi Devils' very next feature after their humiliation against Mumbai Monsters, was against Chennai Cobras, the second best team in the league after the Monsters. This was the first of three consecutive matches with them over the following months. Anthony, the manager of the Cobras, after seeing Delhi Devils' loss against their rivals, decided not to use his first team, but his youth team instead, believing they were enough to defeat the Devils.

Joey saw this as an opportunity. An opportunity to bag his first win as team captain. If he was able to get just a draw- that was more than enough for him. He was not going to let himself lose.
The match was 3 days away. In order to win, he had to get the team ready in just 3 days, or else it would result in another humiliation. This was a do or die for him.

Jack Langley arrived at the training grounds at 4:00 am, 45 minutes before the time assigned by the new pseudo-manager Joey, who was lying down smack in the middle of the pitch... naked.

"Huh?" Jack exclaimed loudly.

Joey, hearing this, sat up and waved at Jack before calling out: "Bizarre to see you arrive this early. You're normally a latecomer."

Jack, still weirded out because of the absence of clothes on Joey's body, responded back: "Yeah, I just wanted to see what you were up to as the captain... And it's not looking good."

"Oh you mean because I'm naked? Well, there's a reason for that. Come on in, let's do some stretching while waiting for the others."

When the rest of the team arrived at 4:45, grumbling about the time, the first thing they set their eyes on were two naked men warming up on the pitch. Around the field, too, several club staff and cleaners had paused their work to stare at this unusual occurrence. Joey, spotting the players, called them in.

When they were all assembled together, Right Back Gopal Kumaran, 35 years old and Vice Captain of the team was the first to break the ice.

Gopal was an aging defender who never fulfilled his potential. Even now, he remembered his childhood days playing for his school team and winning cup after cup in all his tournaments. He was recognized as the 'Iron Wall' of his school and was a defender everyone feared, due to his ability to seamlessly transition from defense to attack. After a few years of playing, he had gotten many offers, but the biggest one was for PK Fartizan, the largest club in the Serbian league. It was a dream come true for him.
But it was short-lived.

Halfway through his first season there, he was the target of a terrifying tackle in the 60th minute of a match. Immediately the perpetrator was sent off with a red card and Gopal had to come off the pitch due to an injury. When he was checked, the doctors had found  multiple compound fractures in his left leg, and Gopal was told he couldn't play football anymore.

For any other player, this would be a career-ending injury, but Gopal was determined to play again. For a year, he worked on recovery, slowly but surely getting better each day. By 6 months, he was able to play football again. But one fact was clear. He would never be able to play like he did previously. He couldn't continue at Fartizan because of this. After just half a season in Serbia, he returned to India a different man. Here and there, he played in small clubs in the state of Tamil Nadu for many years without sticking to just one, until finally, at 30 years old, he transferred to Delhi Devils.

Currently, though, he was standing in front of two naked players of said club.

"Why are you naked?" He exclaimed.

Joey smiled at him before responding. "Take your clothes off and I'll tell you."

"What...?"

"Go on. Take them off."

Gopal just stared at him, confused. Joey sighed at him before turning to the rest of the squad. "My first demand as captain from you all is that you take off all your clothes right here, right now."

The squad suddenly grew restless.

Jack, who was also naked, supported Joey's demand. "It's okay, you'll understand why when you take them off." 

Gopal was the first to yield. Swearing under his breath, he removed his t-shirt and threw it on the ground. "Now what?"

Joey applauded him for this act. "Good job! But don't stop there. Remove your pants too."

Gopal was annoyed. "Look, I don't understand-"

"Just do it. Trust me."

Midfielder Arvindh Reddy, 19, stood up for Gopal. "What's the meaning of this? Why should we remove our clothes?"

Arvindh had played for Delhi Devils for 3 years. It was the very first club that scouted him, and they had signed him in a 5 year contract. Before this, he was just a regular person who had attended a scouting event with a bunch of friends as a joke. Even though he was rough at the sport, his athleticism and physicality convinced the scout that he had great potential in the game. His vision and passing especially reminded the scout of greats like Xavi and Iniesta. Arvindh was shocked when he learnt he was scouted, but quickly agreed since he had developed an interest in the sport during the match.

Joey ignored Arvindh. Gopal, giving up, slowly removed his pants and then his underwear. Joey then began to speak in a dead serious tone.

"Gopal. What do you feel right now?"

"Obviously shame. I'm stark naked for god's sa-"

"What did you feel last match?"

Gopal paused for a second to let this sink in.

Joey continued: "Is this a greater shame then walking past a booing stadium, getting cups and plates thrown at us? Is it a greater shame then shaking hands with the players who scored 11 goals on us?"

"It's not."

"What's that?"

"It's not!"

Joey, satisfied with the answer, turned to the rest of the squad before speaking.

"From now on, we train naked. No shame can be greater than the shame we felt that day. Being naked is nothing compared to that."

Arvindh was the second to strip down, without saying a word. The rest soon followed suit.

“Let’s start the training now,” said Joey before suddenly, he noticed someone missing in the squad. “Where’s Akuma? He’s pretty late.

Arvindh answered him: “Akuma said he wouldn’t come today, wouldn’t explain why.”

Shoot. Rebound. Control. Repeat. Shoot. Rebound. Control. Repeat. Shoot. Rebound. Control. Repeat. Shoot. Rebound. Control. Repeat. Shoot. Rebound. Control. Repeat. Shoot. Rebound. Control. Repeat.

Again and again and again.

The phone rang. Probably a call from Joey.

Shoot. Rebound. Control. Repeat.

“He’s not picking up. He’s probably sick or something. Anyways, we’re doing passing drills first. Follow my lead.”

“Yes, Captain.”

3 days till the next fixture.