We Are On Right Track

Football has become one of the most-watched leagues. How do you plan to encourage more students to be a part of this game?

The Indian Super League (ISL) has done really well in the last eight-nine years to promote football in our country. Simultaneously, the I-League 2nd Division and all of the state leagues are really helping in attracting true sportspersons towards the games. These leagues give exposure of the game to our young kids so their dreams will become more achievable. The more sectors, the more states and cities we reach to play sports, especially the premium football leagues, the better we will be with each passing day. For instance, post ISL and other leagues, we have no doubt about talent in our nation. The more kids that we can influence, define the right age and give them the necessary tools to improve, the better-off we will be. We have done decently well in the last 5-10 years. But we have to keep doing what we’re doing and keep working hard. And in that context, having a Premier League in our nation, having a lot of games at the top level, really helps.

What can we do to promote football in India?

I think all of us who are integral or who are part owners of football in this nation, which is the clubs, the government, the Federation, the players, the coaches, the fans, the media, have to come together and do our best to promote or nurture sports. We have levelled a lot of criticism at each other. But fortunately, we are on the right track. And the only way forward is to make sure that we do our work properly.

If you are a player, try to play to the best of your capability. If you’re a government personnel, try to help as much as possible. If you are a corporate then keep doing what you’re doing and keep promoting football. If you’re a fan, be passionate and come and watch the games. If you’re the media, make sure that you promote the game, and that’s about it. We just have to keep our head down and keep working hard.

How are schools responding to these sports leagues (excluding IPL) and the response so far?

I don’t have the knowledge about how schools are responding to these sports leagues, but I do know that a lot of schools are inculcating sports in the gym and I think it’s high time. A lot of emphasis is being given to sports and extracurricular activities, which is very important. And I’m really happy about it. I think sports is the one facet which really helps you to develop as a human being. So, I think it should have a big part to play in our schooling system.

How can sports infrastructure be improved?

We have a lack of infrastructure to cater to 1.3 billion people, it’s true. It’s not only true for football, but for almost all the sports. As a nation, we have to do a lot and make sure we work really hard, so that we can create a decent infrastructure. With a decent infrastructure, we can provide the right path to talented kids at the right age. And along with talking about infrastructure, I also want to emphasise that identifying the talent at the right age is also vital. If you want to do well in sports, three-four years become a huge margin going forward. Once we do that, I believe that we are going to do really well in sports.

Please give us a glimpse of your journey throughout the years.

My journey playing football professionally and for the country has been outstanding. Of course, I did go through the normal ups and downs, which generally all the players go through, who have played for a long period. I think, it’s a similar story for almost all of us. But holistically it’s an outstanding feeling. It’s an absolute honour and a privilege to have the kind of life I have had because of playing football professionally for 21 years.

You know, whatever good that has happened in my life, directly or indirectly, it’s all related to football. But I think what stops everything is the fact that I’ve played for my country for the last 17 years. This was something that wasn’t even in my dreams, it is something that I’ve achieved beyond my dreams.

I’ve always said this before that if someone gave me pen and paper 20 to 23 years back when I was just finishing school and asked me to write what kind of life do you want for the next 20 years, I wouldn’t have been able to write the kind of absolute amazing life that I’ve got. I’m in a very privileged position. The least that I can do is to go out and give my best and to be a better version of myself every day.

Now the individual story aside, I am a huge fan of Indian football. I think football in general has done well in the last 10-15 years. But we cannot be satisfied, because we haven’t achieved anything massive in terms of Asian Football. So, we have to keep our head down and keep working hard. Individually, I’ll keep trying to be better every day. I will give my best to make the team better and that’s the kind of target I have. Now that I am 37, I know it’s not gonna last forever.