THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a little over six months' time, 20-year-old Ajith Sivan has gone from a Kerala Blasters fanboy, who was in awe watching the side play in Kochi, to someone who could don the yellow and blue jersey alongside his idols when the new season of Indian Super League (ISL) kicks off in November.
The midfielder hailing from Idukki and plying his trade with Muvattupuzha Nirmala College was the only Kerala footballer, after defender Rino Anto, to be picked, as a developmental player, by the Kochi-based ISL franchise in the domestic players' draft which was held in Mumbai on Saturday.
"When I was cheering the Blasters in Kochi some months ago, not even in my wildest dreams did I imagine I will be a Blasters player this soon," said Ajith, who this season captained his college to the title in The New Indian Express GOAL all-Kerala inter-collegiate football tournament and to the final of the Reliance Foundation Youth Sports national championship.
Thanks to his impressive outings, Ajith found himself among India U-23 probables earlier this year which led to him featuring among the 205 Indian footballers up for grabs in Saturday's draft. "I was surprised to even see my name on the draft list. So, it was quite a shock when my home team selected me in the end," said Ajith.
Ajith came to know about the news after his phone began ringing around 3 pm on Saturday. "I had no idea this was going to happen. But now, I am going to work hard so that I can gain as much as I can training and playing alongside world class players and coaches," he said.
Ajith, son of a quarry worker, began playing football while he was a ninth standard student at the Sri Ayyankali Memorial Government Model Residential Sports School in Vellayani here. However, his game took off after he came under the watchful eyes of coach Anwar Sadath at Nirmala.
A midfielder who likes to create chances for his teammates but also has an eye for goal from distance, Ajith will now be the local flavour in the Blasters squad alongside Vineeth C K, Rino and Prasanth Karuthadathkuni. "This is a dream and I hope it will be a springboard for my career," Ajith said.
The Kerala Blasters squad after domestic draft: Vineeth C K, Sandesh Jhingan, Prasanth Karuthadathkuni, Rino Anto, Lalruatthara, Milan Singh, Arata Izumi, Subhashish Roy Chowdhury, Jackichand Singh, Siam Hanghal, Lalthakima, Pritam Kumar Singh, Samuel Shadap, Loken Meitei, Karan Sawhney, Ajith Sivan