There is some good news. A Srinagar-based footballer has been shortlisted for the 26-man team of probable senior players to represent India. It is a proud achievement for the whole of Kashmir in general and for the football fraternity in particular.
The tall lanky footballer from central Kashmir is known for some of the meanest defending abilities in the football arena and was skipper of the Real Kashmir Football Club for about a year. Hammad is all set to be transferred to FC Goa next year after agreeing on a deal to sign with the Indian Super League club earlier in April. In total he represented Real Kashmir FC in 24 games and kept 12 clean sheets while allowing only 19 goals. Recognizing his defending skills which remind one of Italian defender Paolo Maldini who was also of similar build, Hammad was awarded Best Defender of the 2023-24 I-League season.
Hammad had a long-cherished dream to represent team India in international football. Now that he is most likely to be roped in the squad for the all-important FIFA World Cup 2026 Preliminary Joint Qualification Round two matches against Kuwait and Qatar. Hammad has a compact technique, and great marksmanship qualities and is able to set up forward players on the counter as and when he senses the slightest opportunity. He is very much similar in technique and built to a former international football player from Kashmir Mehrajuddin Wadoo. Former international players Ishfaq Ahmad and Abdul Majeed Kakroo would be proud of his achievement.
On the domestic turf, Hammad has time and again inspired everyone with his defending abilities. He is a great defender and if everything falls in place, we might see him in national colors very soon. This will be an emblematic moment for every football lover in Kashmir. This success would be truly inspirational for the thousands of youth in Kashmir who would now want to take up football as a career in Kashmir. For an enthusiastic sports lover, there is no dearth of mentors in Kashmir.
This would be incomplete without appreciating the efforts of Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha who spawned a culture of sports development in the entire union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Kashmir Valley has changed a lot in the last five years. A lot of positive things are happening on the ground indeed.
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