FIFA U-17 World Cup: Didn’t vote for myself as captain but delighted my teammates did, says Amarjit Singh Kiyam

Amarjit Singh Kiyam has been elected as the India U-17 captain. (Source: Twitter)

Out of the 27 member team who voted last week to elect a captain to represent the hosts in the FIFA U-17 World Cup, Amarjit Singh Kiyam received all but one vote – his own.

In an interview to Times of India, Amarjit said, “That was me. I don’t think it would be fair on my part to nominate myself for the post. Who praises his own self? I didn’t vote for myself but I am delighted that my teammates did.”

Coach Luis Norton de Matos had made each player write the names of the candidates in order of preference on a sheet of paper. The first name got five points, second name three and the final choice one. The team unanimously voted for Amarjit to be elected their captain while second-placed Jitender will be his deputy. Confident after leading India at the AFC Under-16 Championship, Suresh Singh ended with the third highest votes.

The 16-year old, however, feels that everyone should get a chance to learn. “We are all juniors and at this stage, it doesn’t matter. Perhaps if I was leading senior India and my captaincy was stripped, I would have felt it. But at this level, we are all learning. I feel everyone should get a chance to lead,” he said. “If my teammates had chosen someone else for the captaincy, I would have been happy with that as well. We have many leaders in the team and because they need one to represent them on the field, they chose me.”

“Even during our World Cup preparations, we have had many captains. I am happy that I have been given the chance to lead India the World Cup but, honestly, all that I ever wanted and dreamed was to be in the starting eleven when India play the World Cup.”

A quiet person, Amarjit admitted that he screams at his team when it is required. “Yes, it’s true that I’m generally quiet but sometimes I need to shout. There is a limit to what I can see and keep mum. There is time for everything. But, generally, I tend to stay close to everyone. We have to help each other,” said the U-17 captain.