He came, he saw, he conquered. PR Sreejesh signed off an illustrious 18-year career between the goalposts for India in the most fitting of fashions: with his second Olympic medal to show for it all.
Sreejesh, in specific, was in top form in Paris and took his performance to another level against Great Britain in the quarterfinal when India were reduced to 10 men thanks to a straight red card for Amit Rohidas.
But, the 36-year-old’s resilience and temperament would be highlighted the most in the lowest moment for the side at the Olympics.
India suffered a heartbreaking 2-3 defeat to world champion Germany in the semifinals which ended their hopes of contesting for the gold. And now resorted to play for the Bronze, this was the last chance for Sreejesh to bring more glory to his beloved nation.
At an event hosted by Hocket India in honour of the legendary keeper, Indian skipper Harmanpreet Singh shared details of the brief, but inspiring conversation he had with Sreejesh, who was playing his last-ever match for India.
“After we lost the semi-final, I remember Sreejesh cheered us all up by saying, “Macha, today, in this tournament, we as the Indian team have showcased our hockey to the world and the whole world is showering us with love. This is a huge achievement for us. And we have one last opportunity to play together as a team and show them what we got”. So, that’s what we did, we went out and played as a team.
“Also, before going for the Bronze match, I told Sreejesh “Ye aapka life ka last match hai (This is your final match),” to which he merely replied by saying, “Khelunga bhi waise hi (I’ll play it as such)” What a moment that was.”
“Since the first day of the tournament, we put up posters of him (Sreejesh) in our meeting rooms, locker rooms, everywhere, in order to remind ourselves that we are dedicating this medal to him. And it was huge for us to win the medal, dedicate it to him and to celebrate him,” stated am emphatic Harmanpreet.
It was infact Harmanpreet, who anchored India and inspired them witha brace of his own, tp a fiery 2-1 win over Spain at the Paris Olympics, ensuring that Sreejesh walked away from the sport with glory.
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