Sunil Chhetri Retirement: ‘Fitness is not the reason behind retirement’

Sunil Chhetri, who has played the most 150 matches for India and scored the most 94 goals, announced on Thursday that he will retire after the match against Kuwait on June 6 in Kolkata. Chhetri’s retirement will end an era of Indian football. He has been the captain of Team India since 2011. He was made the captain after Baichung Bhutia retired. Since then, he has been seen handling this responsibility. However, even at the age of 39, he still looks very fit and has broken many records in the last two years.

It was being said that Chhetri has retired due to increasing age, fitness and fatigue. Now Chhetri has himself dismissed all these reports and revealed the reason behind his retirement. Chhetri has said – The reason behind the decision of retirement is not physical but mental aspect. I am still fit.

Chhetri said – I am still very fit

Chhetri said, ‘The decision to retire was not taken due to physical reasons. My fitness is good and I am still running. I am defending, it is not difficult to work hard. This decision has been taken keeping in mind the mental aspect.’ Chhetri, however, did not say much about the issue of mental health. In the current era, it has become a matter of concern among players in various sports. Many great athletes including Virat Kohli have talked about mental health.

Chhetri said, ‘I was fighting with myself. I was trying to think holistically and suddenly took this decision. I will play for Bengaluru FC for one year. I don’t know how long I will play domestic football. After that I will take a break.’ When asked if he would now think about coaching after his career as a player ends? Chhetri said, ‘I will never say no. I will think about it during the break, but right now it is not a priority in my agenda.

Sunil Chhetri’s statement about Virat
Chhetri’s contract with the Indian Super League team is till next year. Chhetri, who was the poster boy of Indian football after Baichung Bhutia, said that he spoke to coach Igor Stimac before taking the decision. He said, ‘I went to Stimac and told him about this decision. He understood me.’ Apart from the coach, he also talked to India’s star cricketer Virat Kohli about this. Chhetri said – Virat is very close to me and understands me.

Chhetri became emotional before announcing retirement

Earlier, Chhetri became emotional while announcing his retirement. Recalling the emotional time with his family, he said that his mother and wife had tears in their eyes. Chhetri said – I had told my mother, my dad and my wife, my family earlier. My dad was normal, but my mother and my wife started crying and I told them that you always used to tell me that there are too many games and there is too much pressure when you see me. Now I am telling you that after the match on June 6, I will not be able to play for my country.