Never expected to lead India in 2017 FIFA U-17 WC: Amarjit Singh

NEW DELHI: Amarjit Singh, who captained India in the only FIFA World Cup that the country have participated till now, feels their family can be labelled as "World Cup family" should his cousin Kritina Devi represent India in the forthcoming U-17 Women's World Cup to be held next year.

"She is one of the few girls from our place who started playing football with boys. I hope she gets selected and plays in the upcoming U-17 Women's World Cup. It will be a very proud moment for our family. Then we can be tagged as a world cup family. Isn't it?" Amarjit said during an interview with AIFF TV.

Kritina is an integral member of the Indian team who are gearing up under the coaching of Swedish coach Thomas Dennerby for the upcoming World Cup to be held in India.

Amarjit and his cousin Jeakson have already written their names in the history books, having represented the country in the 2017 U-17 World Cup. While Amarjit captained the side, Jeakson was India's scorer against Columbia - India's sole goal in any FIFA World Cup till date.

"Jeakson and I have shared our experiences with Kritina and she sounds thrilled. Those are lifetime memories and don't sink in soon. Hope she also gets the opportunity to experience these things at the biggest stage," Amarjit said.

Amarjit also mentioned how he was "chosen" to be the captain before the U-17 World Cup. The-then coach Luis Norton de Matos hosted an election to choose the captain and almost the entire squad chose the Manipuri midfielder unanimously - "the chosen one" indeed!

"The coach asked us to share three preferences and accordingly, we used to rate them. Once everyone submitted their preferences, I found that almost everyone mentioned my name as one of their choices. I realised how much they loved and respected me. It elevated my role in the team and I realised my responsibility as the leader."

"My dream was to play my part and get selected in the team for the FIFA U-17 World Cup. I spent more time with them compared to my family. For my surprise, they chose me as their captain. I never expected that, even in my wildest dream," the 19-year-old revealed.