Volleyball player Ratheesh still going strong after years of hardship

HYDERABAD: Surrounded by players much taller than his 172 cm frame, CK Ratheesh is often the odd man out on a volleyball court. However, at 39, he is an important cog in the wheel of the Kerala state team that won the last two senior national championships and is currently playing in the ongoing nationals in Chennai. 

For his exploits, he was recently awarded a lucrative contract in the Pro Volleyball League (PVL) by the Calicut Heroes. At Rs 9.8 lakh, he became one of the most expensive spikers in the league that commences on February 2. The league will see six franchise teams square off against each other in Kochi and Chennai, with big international names like Olympic gold medallist David Lee slated to participate. 

Life wasn’t always so rewarding for Ratheesh. As little as a year ago, he did not even have a permanent job. For someone who has dedicated a major part of his life to the sport, Ratheesh was a bit unlucky, for he did not have proper means to support himself for a really long time. It was only after his consecutive triumphs with Kerala that he was offered the post of an office assistant at Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation.      

  

“He has played for many clubs in Kerala, earning reasonable money for his services during the season. But when the season used to end in about four months, he used to struggle for the remainder of the year. All of that will stop now, considering he has a job and a good contract in PVL,” sources close to the player told this newspaper. 

As far as Ratheesh is concerned, he just wanted to be a part of the league. “I never expected such a big amount. It was really shocking for me. I just wanted to be a part of the league. That is all,” Ratheesh, who hails from Kozhikode, told this daily.      

A player who has never played for India ending up as one of the costliest buys in the league raises questions. “It is quite evident that his performances for Kerala over the last two seasons led them to two straight national titles. His age does not demotivate him. Hence the big purse. He is a big utility player,” Heroes owner Safeer PT said. 

Ratheesh, whose brother has also represented Kerala, started his career as a setter but went on to become a libero, a role he has performed for the last 19 years. “I have started my game as a setter, and I played as an attacker too. But I realised soon that with my height it’s better to be a libero. I had a good defensive game during that time itself,” the player, who started playing the game at the age of 15, said. 

Times have clearly changed since when his financial woes meant that he did not even have proper shoes to practice. “PVL is good news for Indian volleyball. Many talented spikers will come to the fore.  Of course, it would have been better, had PVL come a bit earlier. But I am still happy as I plan to continue for a minimum of two more years before I hang up my boots,” he said.