Junior goalkeepers prepare by themselves for Asia Cup watching Sreejesh's videos

New Delhi, Sep 9: PR Sreejesh has not resumed training yet. He has been doing rehab programme for the last four months after having surgery on his right knee due to a ligament injury.

Sreejesh recently told, “I have resumed fitness training at the gym. But it might take more three weeks to get full recovery to resume training with the team at the national preparatory camp at SAI complex in Bangalore.”

It means the leading goalkeeper will not be available to give his services to the senior Indian team’s impending international engagement Asia Cup hockey, to be held in the first and second week of October in Bangladesh.

Still, Sreejesh seems to be there invisibly along with the junior goalkeepers who have been currently in the senior national camp since last five months.

Two leading junior goalkeepers of the senior Indian squad Vikash Dahiya and Akash Chikhte have no goalkeeping coach for last five months.

They got specialized training from former Olympian goalkeeper, Bharat Chettri, before Hockey World League Semifinals championship, held in June in London.

So, the goalkeepers are training themselves and at the same time they are taking help of country’s best goalkeeper Sreejesh.

Dahiya speaking on the issue said recently, “We are watching the video of Sreejesh Bhai almost every day after the of practice. We watch some special matches where Sreejesh had outstanding performance. Especially, we minutely observe the goalkeeper’s position at the time of opposition’s penalty corner. Sreejesh has been simply superb in these technical areas.”

Dahiya admitted who was the first choice goalkeeper of the Indian team in the Hockey World League semifinals, admitted saying, “We made a lot of mistakes in the Hockey World League Semifinals. Especially, our defence and we the goalkeepers were not at all up to the mark. During that phase I was remembering Sreejesh. Even if he does not take part in a match, he offers a lot of important suggestions to the inexperienced goalkeepers like us.”