Head hunter

Charismatic and prolific, Abhishek Yadav, is one of the top drawcards of Mumbai football. Hindustan Times' Camilo Fernandes tackles the Mahindras striker, known for his ability to nod in goals.

Six feet two, lean and handsome, Abhishek Yadav could pass off as a model. But the football pitch, not the catwalk, is more his scene. Abhishek, the main strikeforce of Mumbai's leading outfit, Mahindra United, was top scorer in the recent Nadkarni Cup with seven goals.
Once in his zone on the pitch, the 25-year-old Abhishek resembles a hungry hawk and is a source of anxiety in the opposition ranks. He usually gets special security, sometimes he has two defenders guarding him. But he often mesmerises them with deceptive movements in the rival box. Abhishek's lanky frame gives him an added advantage, especially when dealing with aerial balls. It is no wonder that most of his goals come from headers.
The articulate Abhishek seemed to grow taller during the Nadkarni Cup at the Cooperage recently, even though Mahindras lost the final to Air India. It was rare, if not unique, sequence in Indian football as he strung together two consecutive hat-tricks.
Former England coach Stephen Constantine, under whom Indian football showed glimpses of a resurrection, unleashed newcomer Abhishek as a super-sub in the 2002 LG Cup in Vietnam. There, he emerged as the find of Indian soccer.
Abhishek is set to score more goals for his team, but is quick to dismiss the hero tag. "It is unfair for an individual player to get all the credit when the entire team chips in," he says. "As soon as Mahindra United goalkeeper Sandeep Nandy releases the ball, the whole team goes into attack mode and each individual in defence, midfield and the forward line plays as one entity."
But isn't his job more special than the others', considering that ultimately it's goals that matter ? "The striker's job is only to finish off the attack and produce goals. What would I do if the ball is not passed to me ?" he asks with all modesty. "The entire team is putting in equal effort, so all are equally entitled to take credit for the goal."
Abhishek is all praise for the team's strong pack of midfielders. "Steven Dias, Sushant Mathew, S Venkatesh, our main playmaker, and Khalid Jamil send a constant flow of passes," he says, before adding a few names from the defence to that list.
The sudden-death defeat Mahindra United suffered in last Sunday's local derby was a heartbreaker for the team and more so for Abhishek as the jeepmen seemed to be cruising after his first half goal. "I couldn't sleep that night," he says. "Everyone was disappointed. But I guess we must move on."
Abhishek has come a long way since his soccer saga took off at Don Bosco School in Matunga. Born in Kanpur, Abhishek moved with the family to New Delhi before dad HN Prasad, a distinguished javelin thrower employed with Central Excise, was transferred to Mumbai. The fifth grader too gained a transfer to Don Bosco, one of the strongholds in the local football school league, where Central Railway chief coach Adip Kenkre drilled the basics into youngsters. " Kenkre sir was responsible for me taking up football, " Abhishek says, while reminiscing his days at the Matunga School. "He used to make the game fun and was my favourite teacher. He taught us about the psychology of the game. He ensured that I continued paying after my school days."
Kenkre, who has started a football academy under his own name, remembers telling the 11-year-old that he would one day play for India. "Abhishek, even at that age, was the tallest in the group, with a much higher IQ level than the rest. He picked up the game faster than the rest because he was intelligent and understood instructions."
Thrilled with the youngster's goalscoring ability, Kenkre made a trip to Goa just to see him lead Mumbai University in the 1999 inter-university championship. "I went to see him play even though I was not coaching the side," says Kenkre. "He scored maybe two dozen goals. I was impressed."
Abhishek also fondly remembers Bhasak Maity, the Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers coach, who snapped up the youngster after a practice match at their Chember ground. When the contract papers were drawn for the 1997-98 local season, he was pleasantly surprised. "I was asked if the (signing) amount was enough," he smiles. "I didn't know what to say... I could not believe I was being paid to play football."
Former Mahindra United manager Harish Rao, who recruited Yadav in 2002, has praise for the youngster. "Though he was playing alongside experienced players like Mohammed Najeeb. Raman Vijayan, and Abbas Ali Rizvi, he emerged as the top score that season," Harish remembers. That season the team won the Harwood league, the Nadkarni Cup, and the Durand Cup.
A Political Science graduate from Ruia College, Abhishek is halfway through his MA. He has twice enrolled for his second-year examination but has been unable to be appear for it due to football engagements. "I am hoping to get injured someday," he laughs. "Then I will be able to finish my MA."
While his brother went on to become a pilot and his sister a doctor, Abhishek, encouraged by his parents to pursue whatever he was passionate about, remains content playing football. "My uncle once took me for (cricket) nets at the Oval Maidan," he remembers. "I did a little bowling, and people around were impressed with my speed. But I enjoyed football more.'
Have rival defenders figured him out ? "They try to read my mind," he says. He rates Mahindra's Mahesh Gawli, Dipak Mondal, Sameer Naik and Air-India's Binoy Kuruvilla among the toughest defenders he has come across.
He will face more. When that happens, you can be sure that Abhishek will go all out to rice head and shoulders over them.

About Abhi
Born: June 10, 1980
Birthplace: Kanpur
Height: 6 feet 1.5 inches.
Weight: 78 kg.
Club: Mahindra United.
Position: Striker.

His favourites
GOALS: The matchwinner against Vietnam in the LG Cup 2002 final. India were 0-2 down before Bhutia scored a brace and Abhishek struck the third at the fag end of the match. The LG Cup was India's first major title since 1970 Asian Games bronze medal.
The golden goal against Pakistan in the third place playoff in the 2003 SAF Cup in Dhaka.

PLAYERS: Ronaldo, Thierry Henry and Ruud van Nistelrooy.

PASTIMES: Enjoys long drives in his new car, a Honda City. "I bought it with my own money," he says. Likes to watch movies and surf the net for information on football and hockey. "I have many hockey player friends,'"he says.

FOOD: Non-vegetarian, preferably chicken. Rates mom's chicken curry the best.

MISIC: Depends on mood and company, claims to have an ear for good songs old and new

HATES: Losing, even in practice, washing clothes, and packing. "Ask Venky, who is usually my roommate," he says with a smile.