Olympic bronze medalist forward Abhishek started playing hockey to escape from studies but he never regretted the decision as the game gave him recognition, ‘stardom’ and everything he wanted to achieve in life.
Although Abhishek managed to complete his graduation through correspondence, the player always knew that sports would give him a better purpose.
Abhishek, who played an important role in India’s bronze medal winning campaign in the Paris Olympics, said in an interview to ‘PTI-Bhasha’, “I started playing hockey at the age of 11 or 12.Apart from this, I had no other option in Sonipat.
He said, “A friend of mine used to travel a lot to play hockey. I never had the patience to study and when I saw that my friend had to come to school less because he was busy with hockey, I thought that if I also started playing hockey, I could do the same. ‘
The member of the Indian team that won the gold medal in the Hangzhou Asian Games said that he is a big fan of Portuguese football legend Cristiano Ronaldo and his way of working. He said, “I am a big fan of Ronaldo. His off-field routine, his discipline, eating habits… I watch his videos and try to incorporate them (habits) in my daily routine.
Abhishek said that his aim is to win the hockey gold medal. He said, “My aim is to revive the golden era of Indian hockey. We have started the process of winning medals at the Olympics, but the golden age has not been achieved yet. That’s my goal.” Abhishek was the second most expensive player after Indian captain Harmanpreet Singh (Rs 78 lakh) in the re-started Hockey India League (HIL) auction. He was bought by Srachi Rar Bengal Tigers for Rs 72 lakh. This will be his first HIL experience and hopefully he is excited about this tournament.
He said, “This will be a different experience from international matches. HIL is also going to be a big thing for Indian hockey as we will get a chance to meet a lot of players in the league. IPL has shown the way as it is producing new players for Indian cricket. HIL will also help the national team. ,
“It will make a huge difference,” he said. Our HIL team has some of the best players from Belgium and Germany. It will be very important to share the dressing room with him during HIL and get information related to the game. We will learn small things from them.
Abhishek is the second most expensive player in the league but he said that he would rather enjoy the pressure than take it. He said, “There will be responsibility (but) I don’t want to take any pressure.” I will play my game. If I take pressure, I will not be able to give my 100 percent. I will just try to enjoy my game.