Click to play videoNew Delhi: Viren Rasquinha won't be seen on a hockey field after a month following his retirement from the game. He will now pursue a course in business administration from the Indian School of Business in Hyderabad later this year.
Rasquinha has been one of Indian hockey's most visible faces for the last six years and was a tireless player who gave his all for the country.
"Normally I don't think about it but just this morning I was thinking this is going to be my last match in Delhi at the Shivaji Stadium. From that point of view it is a little bit of regret but I have really enjoyed my hockey. It has been really good for me," says Rasquinha.
He always loved playing in Delhi and at the Shivaji Stadium and even though his team Indian Oil lost in the final of the Maharaja Ranjit Singh tournament, there was no letting up in the commitment levels of the former Indian captain.
"I am going to miss a lot of guys in the team because for the past 10 years of my life these guys have been my family more than my family. It's my home away from home. I have got some fantastic friends in hockey and I am going to miss them the most," he says.
Though there's no Adam Gilchrist style farewell but he is happy he will play his last tournament in his hometown Mumbai.
And he has a parting shot for all his fellow hockey players.
"Its very important that hockey also gets icons and positive role models. We have one Dhanraj Pillai and he is an absolute legend. We have Dilip Tirkey but we really need more. i would really love to see the India team players taking more responsibility on and off the field to portray the game into good light,' he adds.
Rasquinha is only 28 and it isn't the age for a player to walk away into the sunset but he has chosen his path and now has a whole new life ahead.
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