Sunil Chhetri, the Captain Fantastic of Indian football, to hang up boots from int'l events in June

CHENNAI: Only a handful of names come to mind whenever someone talks about Indian football. Legends like Tulsidas Balaram, PK Banerjee, and Baichung Bhutia have all gone down in history as some of the game’s best players. One such player, Sunil Chhetri, will wear the Indian shirt for the final time on June 6th at the famed Salt Lake Stadium in Kolkata, when India takes on Kuwait in a World Cup qualifier.

For close to two decades, Chhetri has been the face of Indian football. He holds the record for the highest number of international goals by active players, behind only Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

“It’s not that I was feeling tired. When the instinct came that it should be my last game, I thought about it a lot and eventually came to a decision,” said Chhetri in a video.

The 39-year-old has found the back of the net 94 times while representing the Blue Tigers and also holds the record as India’s most-capped player. Chhetri is India’s only footballer to have played in multiple leagues outside the country, including stints in Major League Soccer (MLS) with Kansas City Wizards and in the Portuguese Liga with Sporting CP’s reserve team.

Wearing the blue jersey and sporting the orange armband, Sunil has effortlessly found the back of the net many a time when needed the most, frequently diverting the attention of the cricket-obsessed nation towards football. He has led the country to multiple SAFF Championships, the Intercontinental Cup, and recently, the Hero Tri-Nation Series in 2023.