[Exclusive] PR Sreejesh: Goalkeeping is a thankless job

But for the Indian sportsman, it is the only available path to his dream – financially secure enough that he can finally pursue his passion. While many fall by the wayside and are content with playing in the yearly tournaments as the perks of the job kick in, it was not so for Sreejesh.

Sreejesh comes from Kizhakkambalam village in Ernakulam, and that is where he studied until his sixth standard. A recognizable talent even as a kid, he had started out with track & field back then. At 12, he moved to Thiruvananthapuram to join a sports school, and that is where his journey officially began.

I think think for me that (athletics) was the base. I started my career as an athlete, and that has helped me develop my muscles from the childhood.

Sreejesh

Hockey and Kerala does not sound so familiar. India has traditionally produced its stars from only a handful of states like Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Orissa. Sreejesh smiles and says, “It is because of the culture. If you see Kerala, we are rich with athletes and football players. We even have very good basketball and volleyball players. So the culture in the villages is such that they support these sports, because everyone wants to watch those games, and we have never been into hockey that much”.

“Tamil Nadu have got a very good infrastructure for hockey. They have got a lot of astroturfs, they have got a good gym. The Indian Overseas bank always gave good facilities to their players, and that is how I developed myself. Then when I started to play for the junior team, my bank promoted me. That gave me more inspiration to do well. That kind of support, which I had from my bank and Tamil Nadu, that is what brought me to this level,” he says.

Lamenting the lack of adequate infrastructure in the country, Sreejesh says, “The astroturf introduction affected Indian hockey a lot. Not only Indian hockey, the Asian hockey as a whole.

“Earlier, it was like the players started their career on the grass turfs, they learn their hockey on those grass field, and then they played international matches on grass fields, so it was easier for them to perform.

If you look at Holland, I think they have like 800-900 astroturfs. But when it comes to India, we have like 150-160 astroturfs. That is making a huge difference.

Sreejesh

Sreejesh had spent years under the shadow of experienced hands like Adrian d'Souza and Bharat Chhetri before he burst on to the scene in 2013. He was one of the few older players in a relatively young and inexperienced players back then. After bagging the 'FIH player of the year' award in 2014, Sreejesh has been the bedrock of many an Indian performance – he has single-handedly saved Indian the blushes and taken them through in tournament after tournament.

“In the junior level, I never followed anyone. But later, I started following Adrian D'Souza. He was a former goalkeeper, and he is like my brother. We played together for almost three years. He was like a role model, a guide, a brother, and a coach for me. I used to copy him, but he told me, 'Sreejesh never try to copy me. Try to develop your own style, and that is going to help you'. That helped me a lot,” says Sreejesh.

Sreejesh has earned respect from teammates and opponents alike. But the custodian was sorely missed when he was rested for the Azlan Shah tournament although India did manage to reach the final. He returned for the Champions trophy and was awarded the captaincy in the absence of Sardar Singh. The faith bestowed was fairly rewarded when he took India to the final where they lost only by a contentious penalty shootout to World Champions Australia despite his heroics.

Sreejesh gets philosophical when the question is put forward and talks about why there are just not enough goalkeepers around. “Goalkeeping is a position where you need more experience, and you need some crazy people. It is a thankless job. Every time you cannot expect people to come and say that you have done a good job, or you are ok. People are always there to talk against you, even if you concede just one goal. That is how goalkeeping is. Nobody wants to be a goalkeeper, because nobody would recognize you. It took me around 14-15 years to come out of that mask. On the field I always wear a helmet, and people recognized my helmet only.”

He has seen a resurgence in Indian hockey with the current team. India struggled to make the Olympics in 2008, finished last in the 2012 Olympics, but the past year has been tremendous with India finishing with a medal in the FIH Champions league, Azlan Shah tournament, and in the Champions League. After having been part of a glorious revival, what does he hope to do eventually when he retires? Sreejesh asserts he wants to do something for the growth of hockey in his home state.

It would be a tough time in Indian hockey when the stalwart finally decided to hang his boots. The Indian team has been used to the scene of the familiar six-foot figure of a heavily-padded and barely recognizable Sreejesh. The defence has moved ahead confident with the knowledge that there is a last line of defence that will hold off almost all, if not all, the attacks in case they mess up. But with Sreejesh on the wrong side of 30, it is a matter of a few years before he calls it a day. What happens after that?

“I think now those who are behind me, like Vikas (Dahiya), Harjot (Singh), or Akash (Chitke) they are doing really good. In one or two years, they will be a better goalkeeper than me. So by the time I retire from the game, I think there will better goalkeepers, or the best India has ever produced,” he says.