All Hail Sunil Chhetri!

His arms aloft, Sunil Chhetri stood before those who had come to adore him. In that second, he had the massed ranks of Indian fans inside the massive Kanteerava Stadium under his spell. They did not bounce and writhe in celebration. Instead, he held them perfectly still, caught in a moment of quiet communion between the divine and his congregation. Then, of course, it broke. The stands above seemed to melt and to shake, a roar of joy and relief and affirmation reverberating around this vast, golden bowl. On the field, Chhetri was flooded by his jubilant teammates. He had not only scored the goal but had also created it, willed it into being, and fashioned it from whole silk. And, at last, he had done what he had set out to do. This was Indias ninth SAFF Championship title. Seventeen years and 92 international goals ago, the 20-year-old Chhetri found himself limping miserably in front of 20,000 howling Pakistanis at Ayub National Stadium in Quetta. But he kept going anyway. It was his India debut, and nothing was going to deny him an opportunity for glory. The breakthrough came in the 65th minute of the goalless match, when former captain Climax Lawrence took aim, and his volley deflected off defender Tanveer Ahmed. Chhetri pounced like a tiger, collected the ball, and spun to his left to shoot low and hard, just past the keepers outstretched right hand. Then, a goal. Delirium. Blood pounding in his ears, he vaulted the railing and ran to face the ever-energetic crowd. They stared back, hushed and angry. This was the surreal starting point of one of the most improbable, incredible stories in the annals of Indian sports. It has been a long journey to privileged stardom for the deceptively slender, preternaturally determined 39-year-old, who has already spent half his life in professional football. By his own admission, he has been blessed with the gene because his father was a part of the Indian Army team and his mother played for Nepal, along with her twin sister. This makes for an interesting biographical similarity with Sachin Tendulkar, who credits his mother for being his first bowler because it is Sushila Chhetri who ignited a competitive fire in her son Sunil. Chhetri at the age of one (Pic: Kharga Chhetri/Indian Football Team/Facebook) Perhaps, whats even more delightful is how he, time and again, has expressed his reverence for boxing queen Mary Kom, just when you would expect him to name someone like David Beckham or maybe Diego Maradona. Believe it or not, his style of play increasingly features elements identical to Marys trademark never-give-up attitude and sheer grit. Where he was once all spark plug and no gears, now it is watchful cruise control, but without concession on any scoring opportunity. You can see it in the goals he scores, one after another, the astonishing 80-yard run foxing seven separate defenders to score against Kyrgyzstan, the imperious chip over Kenyas outclassed goalkeeper, the edges, parries and headers piled up relentlessly to break every Indian record. Also Read: Unraveling mega deals and dilemmas: Kylian Mbappe and the Saudi Arabia offer Ronaldo, Messi, and you: the records dont lie. We all recognise 38-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo as the real-life superhero who has pocketed five Ballon DOr awards (for the best player in the world) while scoring 123 goals for Portugal. Thats the most of any active player. His constant rival Lionel Messi has seven of his own Ballons DOr, as well as 103 goals for Argentina. While it is undeniably spectacular, Chhetri is ranked third, just behind the two modern-day greats in international football. The scale of this achievement is so off the charts, that it is almost impossible to compute. Ronaldo and Messi play for football-obsessed championship-winning nations, and have spent their entire adult lives cosseted in the elite apex of the game. But Chhetri – to put it mildly – plays for India, which is accustomed to dwelling at the very bottom of the global football cellar. Few people realise football was firmly entrenched in the subcontinent well before cricket – the International Cricket Council (ICC) raised India to Test status only in 1932 and it was another 20 years before we actually won a match. Our Durand Cup is actually the third-oldest football tournament in the world, and Kolkata teams like Mohun Bagan were set up in the 1880s, well before – for example – Ronaldos Juventus (1897) or Messis Barcelona (1899). In fact, right into the 1960s, we used to regularly beat Asian powerhouses that later became World Cup fixtures: Japan, China, and Iran. Or the fact that India cruised past Vietnam (current FIFA rank 93) and Japan (27) to beat South Korea (38) and take home the coveted Asian Games gold. But then came long decades of doldrums, and the familiar catalogue of despair shadowing constant failure as we surrendered to an unhealthy obsession with the bat and ball, the black hole sucking up all the attention that could be paid to other sports. Yet in the global game, we have an outstanding home-grown superstar at the height of his powers, and I think it is only now that Chhetri is getting his due. But the skipper is too much of a gentleman to complain. His humbleness and willingness to put everything on the line for the club that bears his name and for the national team is something that will go down in history. If one was to talk about all the spectacular things you do on the pitch, he would be here for ages. His incredible statistics and numbers are seldom an indicator to define his contribution and importance. What we have now is what posterity will keep forever: a human superlative, an unrivalled talent, and a winner, for both club (Bengaluru FC) and the country. Quitting doesnt seem to be on his mind at all. It is actually the opposite, with Chhetri firmly believing he can lead his fellow countrymen for some more years. This firmly shows that fire is still burning in his belly, at least when it comes to representing his country. So, while many believe that he has completed the mighty conquests that surround the beautiful game, it seems that he is not finished yet. Age is really a number!

All Hail Sunil Chhetri!

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