Three Mistakes of My Life by Chetan Bhagat

'We came to the temple. It is Harsh bhaiya's birthday,' the younger boy said.
I realised we had struck real-estate gold. The temple was ancient and drew in
people from the new city, too. And it was a birthday, every chance of pockets
being loaded.
'You want to see bats?' I asked from the cash counter.
The boys shook their heads.
Ish turned to me and signalled silence.
'Happy birthday, Harsh. You bowler or batsman?' Ish said.
Harsh looked up at Ishaan. A grown-up man asking an eleven-year-old if he
was a bowler or batsman was a huge honour. It meant he was now old enough to
be specialised, even though he may not have thought about it.
'Er, I am more of a batsman,' Harsh said.
'Defensive or attack?' Ish asked as if he was interviewing Tendulkar on ESPN.
'Huh?' Harsh said.
'You like shots?' Ish asked. Which kid didn't? Harsh nodded.
'Show me your stance,' Ish said. He turned to nie and asked for a bat, I went to
the stack of willow bats. I had bought them directly from a Kashmiri supplier in
Law Garden. I picked the right size for the boy. Size six and two hundred bucks.
Not top of the line, of course, but the best we could hope to sell here.
Harsh took a stance on the empty space in front of the shop. Like every kid, he
leaned his entire weight on the bat while standing. Ish moved over and gently
straightened Harsh's back. He moved his wrist upwards, and told him to balance
the weight evenly on the legs.
'And now, whenever you attack, use the front leg to move forward but do not
forget the back leg. That is your support, your anchor. Notice Tendulkar, he
keeps one leg fixed.'
An awestruck Harsh air-struck a few strokes.
'Give me some tips, too,' the younger one whined.
'First me, Chinu,' Harsh said.
Ish turned to Chinu. 'What are you, Chinu?'
'All-rounder,' Chinu said promptly.
'Great. Show me your bowling grip.'
Their parents finally found our shop. It was time to go to the temple.
'Mummy, I want the ball,' Chinu said. 'How much?' his mother said. 'Six
rupees,' Ish said.
She took out a twenty-rupee note and asked me to give two. 'I want the bat,
mummy,' Harsh said. 'You already have a bat.'
'This one is better for my stance, mummy. Please.' Harsh took a stance again.
He had improved with the lesson but his mother ignored him.
'How much is this?' she said.
'Two hundred rupees,' I said.
'Too expensive. No Harsh, we are not getting a bat.'
'My birthday present, mummy, please.' Harsh cajoled.
'Yes but beta, why buy something from this temple shop. Old city doesn't have
good quality. We will go to the Navrangpura market.'
'It is excellent quality, aunty. We source from Kashmiri suppliers. Take my
word,' Ish said.
'Aunty' eyed us with suspicion.