In the happy family photo, he isn’t in the centre of the frame. You can see him in the bottom corner, sitting second from right. He flashes a big, hearty smile. But unlike others, there isn’t a medal around his neck.
The image was taken on the podium of the Paris Olympics. But it might as well have been the Tokyo Games.
It must be tough being Krishan Pathak. The only player to be with the hockey squad for the last two Olympics, as a reserve, and not receive a winner’s medal at both.
Now is his time, Pathak knows.
On the eve of the Paris Olympics, the International Hockey Federation shared a photo of the 27-year old Pathak and PR Sreejesh — a complete brothers-in-arms vibe — with a caption: The future and the legend.
That one frame captured two unusual happenings in Indian hockey. Sreejesh, the custodian of India’s dreams for more than a decade, had announced the Paris Games would be his last dance. Indian hockey players don’t say they’ll hang the boots — they just fade away into twilight. Sardar Singh was a rare breed who started the trend of formally announcing retirement. But it was unheard of for a player to do it before a tournament.
It’s equally rare to have a succession plan in place. Sreejesh’s might be ultra-large boots to fill. But in Pathak, a veteran of 125 games, India have a ready replacement, a worthy successor.
“Oh, he’s definitely eager. One hundred per cent,” says Dennis van de Pol, a Dutch goalkeeping expert who works closely with the Indians. “Yes, they are big shoes to fill. But I also know that Pathak can do that. And it can only be better as he grows in confidence.”
Next month’s Asian Champions Trophy could be the first time Pathak enters a tournament as the first-choice goalkeeper. One of Suraj Karkera and Mohit HS — the two keepers who were in the core probables for the continental competition — would be Pathak’s backup.
‘Equals’
Sreejesh’s role in the revival of Indian hockey is profound. Without him, it would have been next to impossible for India to win the 2014 Asian Games – their first since 1998 – that triggered a momentum shift leading to the two Olympics bronze medals, which would be tough to imagine without Sreejesh’s match-defining interventions.
He was unlike typical Asian goalkeepers who, according to Van de Pol, ‘have a tendency to just stay there (in the goal), drop down and hopefully save the shots.’ Sreejesh charged out, was aggressive from the get-go and doubled up as an on-field coach, barking instructions to the players in front of him and organising the defence.
Sreejesh’s might be ultra-large boots to fill. But in Pathak, a veteran of 125 games, India have a ready replacement, a worthy successor. (Dennis van de Pol Instagram)
Pathak is a polar opposite in nature. If Sreejesh talked non-stop, Pathak’s voice can barely be heard on the field. If Sreejesh liked engaging in one-on-one duels with the attacker, Pathak remains in control and doesn’t leave the line so frequently. If Sreejesh made himself big in the goal, Pathak deceives the attackers with his relatively small frame.
“Pathak knows he is really powerful, and maybe his opponents think, ‘hey, you’re a little bit smaller than the average goalkeeper (so) we can beat you in the corners’,” Van de Pol says. “But since he’s so powerful, he can still cover the corners easily.”
In Tokyo, Pathak was conscious of the gap between him and Sreejesh, who mentored the goalkeeper 9 years younger than him during the 2016 Junior World Cup. Pathak used the Tokyo experience and the lessons learnt by playing along with Sreejesh to narrow the gap to the extent that there remained very little to choose between the two.
Former coach Graham Reid began giving both the goalkeepers equal amount of playing time and his successor Craig Fulton continued the philosophy. “They split the match times 50-50 not because we wanted to give the other some more experience… but also because we thought they are quite equal,” Van de Pol says. “It didn’t matter to us who we put in the goal, who started the first quarter or ended the game because we thought they were equals. Just months before the Olympics, Sree really just stepped up a bit.”
Pathak might not have a medal to show but the experience of being at two Olympics, Van de Pol adds, will be ‘immense’; ‘just like how Sreejesh benefited from being at London’ as the back-up to then captain Bharat Chetri.
“Yes, it is another four years, but there are so many big tournaments before that that he can attend. So, he will only grow because I know for sure that if he gets more playing time now, he will only be better and better.”
As the second choice after Pathak, India have the option of picking 28-year old Suraj Karkera, who has made 43 international appearances, and Mohit, a promising 19-year old who’s been a part of the senior set-up but has yet to make his debut. Pawan, sparingly used in the last cycle, is also knocking on the door.
“When Sreejesh had some time off during his injury, or when Pathak got married, had kids, then it was mostly Suraj or Pawan who stepped in and they did amazing,” Van de Pol says. “They are also both completely different goalkeepers. Suraj is more like Pathak; more relaxed, more on the line. Pawan is like Sreejesh, a lot of energy, always talking. Mohit, from the under-21s, is more like Pathak and Suraj.”
As India look at life after Sreejesh, it’ll be up to these players to ensure the team does not sorely miss the goalkeeping stalwart. And as the leader of this pack, and based on the succession plan laid out, they’ll turn to Pathak, who will hope to move from the corner of the frame to the front and centre.
