A month earlier, the narrative was about the importance of a preparatory camp ahead of the Asian Games. Then it became about somehow putting a team together. Now it is about reaching on time to somehow take the pitch ahead of the first game.
I had first written this on 15 September 10am in the morning saying the Indian football team will only fly out on the 17th evening and reach China on 18th evening, less than 24 hours before playing their first match against China.
Many did not believe me then and thought it was a sensationalist story. No it is not. It is now confirmed that the team will fly out tonight and reach tomorrow some 16 hours ahead of their first game.
According to the original itinerary, the Indian football team was to train in Thailand and leave for China from Thailand on September 16, to get in two practice sessions ahead of the first game against China on September 19.
The camp did not happen for reasons now known to all, and the team made it back to India on September 12.
Now they will not have a single training session ahead of the first game. And then they play again within 48 hours.
For the record, as mentioned by Head Coach Igor Stimac in an exclusive conversation with Revsportz yesterday, some of the players haven’t ever played with each other.
Yes, Sunil Chhetri has said he will still go and give it his all for India. With Chhetri, you know he will. The same sentiment has been echoed by Sandesh Jhingan, who the coach calls a ‘lion’ in the change room. But is it fair on them or any of the other players? Reaching on the 18th and playing on the 19th without a single training session! Should we or can we expect results? Is it even fair to do so, and then question the coaches and the players?
A month earlier, the narrative was about the importance of a preparatory camp ahead of the competition. Then it became about somehow putting a team together. Now it is about reaching on time to somehow take the pitch ahead of the first game.
Chhetri or Jhingan or anyone for that matter, be it Igor Stimac or some other player, are not magicians. They are human beings with bodies that follow certain biorhythms. After a 15-16 hour travel schedule and more than 20 hours in transit, they are expected to play less than 24 hours after their arrival in China.
The sports ministry made an exception based on requests from the AIFF, and the momentum the sport now has in the country after a run of great results. They made this exception thinking the football team could stand up and deliver in China. With what has happened, is that a realistic expectation anymore?
Yes Chhetri, Jhingan and Stimac will go, and not give up. Yes, they will motivate the boys. But then, there are things which none of these men can control. Without a single training session and without adequate recovery time, will tired bodies recover from the jet lag before taking field against China?
The situation is so farcical that even sports science cannot help. Perhaps the only thing we can do as football fans is pray.