New Delhi: Realising big dreams at a tender age is quite difficult but a global one-of-a-kind initiative like the News9’s Indian Tigers and Tigresses football hunt has made the impossible possible for a lot of talented children. With scores of talented young boys and girls wanting to make it big in football, TV9 Network’s historic project has given them an opportunity and a perfect shape to their childhood dreams of playing football at the biggest stage.
Rigorous trials were conducted from the north to the south of the country where a plethora of talent was unearthed, with young football sensations taking part in the trials in major states of India like Delhi, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal among others. As many as eight scouting camps were held across the country and the historic initiative received 50,000 registrations. Approximately 3,000 girls and 7,000 boys were shortlisted after the registration process but only the ‘lucky’ 32 made it to the finals after a series of trials.
From a small village to realising Austria dream
Energetic Ritesh Debnath features among the final 32 who will get a chance to fly to Austria, getting an international opportunity which he never thought about. Debnath’s journey is somewhat similar to the other youngsters in the group as the dream of making it big in the world of football has been fueled by passion, relentlessness and unmatched hard work.
For Ritesh, it all started with a curiosity about the sport as his simple visits to the football field with his father inclined his interest towards football, turning into a lifelong dream for him. The dream was nothing else but to play the sport for the Indian national team. For a kid like Ritesh, who doesn’t come from a well-off family, working towards his dream and studying at the same time was a tough job but he managed to do it with continuous support from his family.
While he was trying to balance his studies with his football training, he got unwavering support from his school and community apart from his family as together lived his dream. People from his school and neighboured have extended their helping hands to Ritesh to see him fulfill his dream of playing for India. After being selected in the final list, Ritesh is even working harder realising that his every step will bring him closer to his goal
In Austria, Ritesh, along with others youngsters, will get a chance to showcase his talent on an international stage and with the kind of determination possessed by the young boy, the dream of representing India at an international level might be at the doorstep.
Ritesh Debnath’s childhood dreams have got the wings with News9’s Indian Tigers and Tigresses football talent hunt, which is giving an opportunity to 32 talented boys and girls to train in Austria. Football Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
