Indumathi is 'inspector' again as fresh challenge awaits Indian women's football team
Having worked as a frontline worker during the COVID-19 pandemic, the midfielder will now lead the Indian football team in an international friendlies next week.
Not long ago Indumathi Kathiresan would be seen dressed in the khaki of the Tamil Nadu police, patrolling the streets in Chennai as India continued to reel under the stress of a nationwide lockdown in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
From ensuring that the citizens stayed indoors to aiding the essential services workers, the sub-inspector had her hands full over the past year.
Next week, however, the 26-year-old Indumathi will embark on a new journey when she leads the Indian women’s football team in friendly matches against Uzbekistan and Belarus, away from home.
“It is a proud moment to have been named the captain of the Indian team for these two matches. It’s not an easy task, but I’ll try to do the best I can. I’ll try to motivate everyone so that we all move forward together as a team,” Indumathi Kathiresan told the All India Football Federation (AIFF) website.
For Indumathi Kathiresan, who’s been a key player of the Indian women’s football setup ever since her debut in 2017, rising to the task has never been an issue.
Take for instance the challenges she faced being a frontline worker during the pandemic. While her shifts extended up to 15 hours on most days, standing guard in the sweltering Chennai heat just added to its difficulty.
“It was a demanding time for me personally. I barely had the time to do anything else,” Indumathi had told the AIFF in an earlier interview.
“In difficult times like these, you generally want to spend some time with your family, but I did not have many opportunities to do that. It is a call for the nation. I had to ‘play for the nation’ every day during the COVID-19 pandemic, and I had to respond fast.”
Back with the Indian football team that’s preparing for the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, Indumathi Kathiresan said that the team was keen on learning from its previous matches.
India played Serbia, Russia, and Ukraine in their build-up for the continental event in February but lost all three matches.
“We got the opportunity to play three good matches in Turkey. We gave it our best in all the three matches, and gained a lot of experience against quality opponents,” she said.
“Now that we are in Uzbekistan, we will look to carry on the same good work. We have a number of young, energetic players in the team,” Indumathi said.
Lead image: AIFF Media