Indian extended their record of winning the SAFF Championships to nine titles with their latest triumph in Bangalore as they trumped Kumait in the finals of the prestigious tournament.
Indian skipper Sunil Chhetri led from the front as he captained the Blue Tigers to an emphatic title at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium. Chhetri topped the scoring charts with 5 goals to his name from as many games.
In an exclusive with News18, the 38-year-old talisman reflected on a historic campaign that ended with the home nation hoisting the coveted trophy high up in the air in jubilation.
“This SAFF Championship was special. Because we had Lebanon and Kuwait and we still won,”, the 38-year-old said.
Chhetri’s exploits in front of the net at the tournament took his international goal tally to 92 strikes, placing him alongside legendary names such as Argentine World Cup winner Lionel Messi and Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo.
But, the skipper was more focused and interested in how he could help the national team progress rather than aiming for individual glory or personal honours.
“When it comes to giving your best for the country, I can beat even Messi and Ronaldo,” the striker thundered with pride.
As fit and healthy as he is for his age, time is one of those parameters mortal can’t outrun and old age comes to us all. And age is accompanied by questions, or in Chhetri’s case a national concern, pertaining to retirement.
The skipper from Secundrabad did not put a fixed timeline on the day Indian football dreads to ponder over but said that he feels inspired to represent the nation with pride and he would only hang up his boots when the fire inside extinguishes.
“I feel great right now, and I’m inspired to do well for the country. The day I don’t feel that I will quit. But I don’t know when that happens,” the captain left the response open-ended.
Following up on the incredible season team India has had under the aegis of Croatian coach Igor Stimac, Chhetri opined that the biggest focus of the Blue Tigers now is to perform well at the AFC Asian Cup scheduled to begin early next year.
“The Asian Cup will be so important for us and we are all desperate to get to group stages,” the 38-year-old asserted.
Touching up on the recent revolution of the Indian football team and the overall development in the sport’s ecosystem in the nation, Chhetri felt the responsibility to take the momentum forward is everyone’s to care about.
“There is pressure on everyone now in the system to make Indian football better and that is a good thing,” he added.
One of the biggest moments at the 2023 SAFF Championship came when Chhetri followed up his hattrick against Pakistan in the opener with a brilliant strike against Nepal in the second game and proceeded to tuck the ball under his shirt to announce to the world that his missus, Sonam Bhattacharya, was pregnant with their first child.
“I’m looking forward to becoming a dad for the first time,” the captain concluded the segment as Mr and Mrs Chhetri gear up to bring new life into the world.
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