In hockey, a goalkeeper’s protective gear is a labyrinth of sorts, the body trapped in moon-boot-like leg-guards, jutting face-cage attached to poly-carbon helmets, foam kickers, grotesque blocking gloves with heavy strapping underneath and padded shots. The accompanying stick thus resembles a birch than a bludgeon.
Their mobility seems intrinsically reserved. Yet, they are assumed to warrant split-second saves, block the guillotine-smeared balls that travel in excess of 90 mph. They grope and poke, lunge and plunge. Furthering the complication, they coordinate the defence, perform the makeshift sweeper’s duties and instigate counter-attacks.
It’s both suffocation and responsibility conjoined in its excess, but something PR Sreejesh, India’s second-choice goalkeeper in the Olympic squad, says he can’t forgo at any cost. The armour is his trusted collaborator in the 16-yard enclosure. “The first time you wear it, you feel you can’t even move. It’s tough to move, but the more you wear, the better you feel. After all, it’s for your own protection. I would be dead if I play without it,” he said.
The 24-year-old, usually all fire and brimstone, momentarily flirted with an edgy dread of missing out, lest the selectors included only one keeper in the squad—Bharat Chetri being the skipper, Sreejesh would have been dispensed with. “I was 95 percent certain of being selected, but the five percent remained. I would have cared less had it been for any other tournament, but this is Olympics. I can’t miss out,” he sighed.
But having made it, he is certain to feature in a few matches. “The coach (Michael Nobbs) has rotated both of us (he and Chetri). We played the same number of matches in the Olympic qualifier. He has faith in me, and more often than not I have delivered. So hopefully I’ll get my chances and I would give my best, more than 100 percent,” he said.
In fact, he was India’s custodian in the Olympic qualifier final against France as well as the Asian Championship final, which India prevailed in the tie-breakers. That would be his reference point. “That was the most crucial moment of my career in the sense that I was fully convinced of my ability to deliver in tense moments,” he stated.
But he knows the Olympics poses a more gruelling challenge, especially if countered with some of the best drag-flickers in the trade. “I am preparing hard to counter penalty corners. Every day, I had drills with Sandeep Singh, who is one of the best around. The key is to keep your composure and not commit too early. Both mentally and physically I am in a good shape,” he said.
Sreejesh confesses he has a sweet tooth, and that he has abstained from such indulgences to fight the extra bulge. But if India dig out something special in London, Sreejesh can look forward to a whole season of calorific intemperance.