Freshly-retired hockey legend P R Sreejesh said he reversed a widely held superstition to shift focus to his game.
"Like most Hindus, I considered stepping in (onto the turf) with my right foot as auspicious," Sreejesh told 'Nere Chovve' on Manorama New.
"I used to bow and touch the turf before stepping in with my right foot. But after some time, I was worried, 'What if I accidentally stepped in with my left foot?'. That thought began playing a trick on my mind."
The double Olympic medallist said that realisation made him break the popular superstition. "Then I started stepping in with my left foot. It was a conscious decision. The idea was to change my superstitious thinking."
Interestingly, Sreejesh soon realised he was getting superstitious about his 'left-leg first' policy. "Nevertheless, that is one superstition I still maintain. But the fact is playing well is all that matters. It doesn't matter even if you crawl into the ground," said the 36-year-old.
Sreejesh said almost every teammate had at least one superstition. Some didn't trim their fingernails or crop their hair before matches. "In my case, avoiding the superstition made me more conscious. I asked myself why I should step in with my right foot. That helped me shift my focus to my game. I could focus on my basics, things like how not to be bothered if we conceded an early goal early," Sreejesh said.
