Sreejesh’s farewell means a ‘fresh start’ for Karkera

Mumbai: Suraj Karkera calls it a fresh start. Somewhat strange coming from a hockey goalkeeper who is 28 years and 50 caps old after having made his India debut in 2017. Equally strange? Out of those 50 caps spread across the past seven years, seven have been added this month alone.

The staggered stats point to a Sreejesh-size stamp on the goalkeeping scene of the national men’s team. With the long-time Indian custodian retiring from international hockey post the Paris Olympics, Karkera has finally got his chance to step up and step in. He duly did in India’s victorious Asian Champions Trophy (ACT) campaign in the company of Krishan Pathak, the two goalkeepers switching between quarters and not conceding more than one goal in any match collectively.

“It was like a fresh start for me,” Karkera said after returning from China, where he was named player of the match in India’s league stage win over South Korea. “Playing a competition again for the team after a while, it was a great opportunity for me and for the rest of the young guys.”

Those opportunities have come few and far between in the Mumbai-based goalkeeper’s career so far. Transitioning from the juniors into the senior setup at a time when Sreejesh was the undisputed pick in front of the goal, Karkera had to bide his time. Pathak and Karkera jostled for the second goalkeeper’s slot — other than the Olympics, the Indian squad has two goalkeepers in most tournaments who are often rotated every quarter — even as the former increasingly grew into that role.

Karkera got sporadic look-ins — he was part of India’s Asia Cup gold- and bronze-winning squads in 2017 and 2022, and the 2021 ACT team that took bronze — but barely a sustained run. He however remained a cog in the core group through those seven years in which India brought home Olympic bronze medals from Tokyo and Paris.

“Of course, when you’re not part of the team, it is frustrating. You are disappointed,” Karkera said. “But in the end, I’ve been part of two Olympic cycles of a group which was winning a lot of important medals. So, you know that you are also around that level, because you’re part of the 33 and training at the same intensity and level. Sree bhai has raised the bar for goalkeeping. And you train every day to try and reach that same intensity.

“And then it is just a matter of opportunity. It does not matter how many years you wait, because once you get the opportunity, you have to be ready to use it to the best of your abilities.”

Over those years of waiting, Karkera had been seldom short of motivation. He found it in his post-meal chats with teammates in the national camps in Bengaluru — “if you’re doing well, it reflects in your game and people appreciate it,” he said — and with his childhood coaches in Mumbai that includes Dronacharya awardee Marzban Patel.

He also dug it out from reading several books and stories around the struggles of the armed forces. Karkera singles out reading books authored by Major General Ian Cardozo, the 1971 war hero. “He lost his leg during the war and went on to command a battalion. Such things motivate me. It helps you to keep going, keep at it,” Karkera said.

He’s kept at it, and Karkera can now potentially look forward to a higher volume of game time at the start of this new Olympic cycle. He’ll continue to have Pathak for company, his goalkeeping- turned city-mate since last year, and for competition.

“We’ve known each other since 2015. We’ve been to each other’s houses in Mumbai since he shifted here. We spend a lot of good time together,” Karkera said. “He is a fierce competitor. So yes, there will be competition, healthy competition.”