"Helped me see the game from a very different perspective" - Indian goalkeeper Aditi Chauhan on switching between Durand Cup commentary duties and the national team

Aditi Chauhan has in her own right been a pioneer of sorts in Indian football, juggling between different roles throughout her life. At 22, she became the first player from the Indian national women's team to play competitive football in England when she joined the West Ham Ladies. Soon after, Aditi sealed her spot as the first-choice shot-stopper for the Blue Tigresses.

After her stint in England, the Chennai-born returned to India ahead of the 2019-20 season and went on to win the Indian Women's League (IWL) title with Gokulam Kerala FC in her maiden season.

Apart from her exploits on the pitch, she is a master's degree holder in Sports Management from Loughborough University and is the founder of She Kicks Football Academy.

Over the past few years, Aditi has also made a foray into brief spells behind the microphone. Very recently, she was on the commentary team for the 131st edition of the Durand Cup 2022 matches, which was telecasted live on Sports18.

In an exclusive interaction with Sportskeeda, Aditi Chauhan opened up about her commentary duties in the coveted age-old tournament and how it has helped her envision the game of football from a different perspective.

The GKFC custodian is also on a visibly inspired mission to leave the state of women's football in India in a better place than she found it in. With the FIFA ban now long in the past and a new All India Football Federation (AIFF) administration in place, Chauhan further discussed how she wants the women's game to grow in the near future.

---

Here are excerpts from Sportskeeda's exclusive interaction with Indian national team goalkeeper Aditi Chauhan.

Q: Firstly Aditi, how has the experience of commentating on the Durand Cup been so far?

Aditi: Commentary has been a new experience for me, and I am very happy to have got the opportunity to commentate on the 131st edition of the Durand Cup on Sports18. Obviously, it was a very different experience, but I really enjoyed it because it helped me see the game from a very different perspective.

When you are on the field it is a very different look and feel, but from the commentary box, you see the game from a different angle and understand the game very differently. It felt good to share my on-field experiences and then be commentating on the match. I really hope people appreciate my work with the microphone.

Q: Which feels like a more daunting task to you at this point – stint behind the mic or stint in between the posts?

Aditi: The stint behind the mic is a new experience, which is probably why it was a little more daunting than being in between the posts because I have done that for more than 12 years now and I am pretty comfortable and used to that position and that place.

But of course, I am learning with every experience. Every day, I am learning, and I am sure that I will get as comfortable as I am in between the posts.

Q: A word on your Durand Cup commentary team…

Aditi: I am very fortunate that I was able to do the commentary with Mr. Raman (Raman Bhanot), who is obviously a very experienced professional in this field. He has been doing this for more than 20 years, I think.

I am very fortunate that I had his support and everybody else’s support in this new journey, and I am sure that that experience will only help me, and I can only grow from that experience. I hope that I did not make their life very difficult. I enjoyed my experience, and I hope they did too.

Q: This is the first club tournament in the country to be held full-fledged in front of the fans after the pandemic. What have you made of the support the teams have received despite everything else going around in Indian football?

Aditi: Indians have always been passionate about football. It is good to see them throng the stadium across the venues for the Durand Cup. The tournament has been competitive and kept the audience hooked.

Fans are important for any sport to flourish. Sports18 has also helped take this century-old tournament to enthusiasts across the country, which was missing in the last few years. These are good signs for the overall health of the sport and will only help football's popularity across India.

Q: Being a ’keeper yourself, is there any certain young gloveman who has caught your attention in the Durand Cup?

Aditi: It was heartening to see some exciting goalkeepers in the Durand Cup because a lot of teams fielded a young squad to give them experience. A few who caught my attention were – Mohit Dhami from Jamshedpur FC, Mohammedan’s Sankar Roy and Niraj Kumar who started above Vishal Joon.

I’m sure this experience will help them grow and become better goalkeepers in the future.

Q: Coming to the ongoing SAFF Women’s Championship, the Blues Tigresses have registered two thumping victories. What are your expectations from the competition?

Aditi: After a few weeks of uncertainty, it was good to know that we were participating in the SAFF Women's Championship. Of course, we didn’t have as much time as we would have liked for preparation, but we’re not here to give excuses.

We still have the same ambition and same focus to defend the trophy and put up a strong performance, which we’ve been winning ever since this tournament started. We have won all five previous editions. This is the sixth edition, and it is a matter of great responsibility for all of us to be representing the country and defend the championship. We are very focused on that and hopefully, we can bring the trophy back home.

Q: The revoking of the FIFA suspension means that India is back to hosting the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup. There has been a lot of discussion over the last couple of days regarding the kind of impact losing the hosting rights would’ve had on football in the country. If you could give us your take on that and your emotions now that the country has resecured the rights.

Aditi: The U-17 Women’s World Cup 2022 is a great opportunity for our girls and will do their confidence a world of good. Events like these make for a good platform for the players and takes the game to the masses.

Of course, playing in the World Cup is a dream for any athlete and for these girls it is a great opportunity to play and compete against the best across the world. It will help them improve their standards and I feel it will overall help in the development of the game and bring the standard of football up in the country.

These players getting this kind of opportunity and exposure at a young age will help them grow even faster as they progress and compete to become a part of the senior team.

What we do after hosting this tournament is also very important and I’m sure the LOC (Local Organizing Committee), FIFA and AIFF would have a strong legacy program so that they can put women’s football on the right path in India.

Q: Finally, Aditi, over the past few weeks owing to the FIFA ban, Indian football had probably experienced its darkest days. Could you express your thoughts regarding the same and what would be your expectations be from the new administration that has taken over the AIFF?

Aditi: As a sportsperson, nobody likes uncertainty. Every footballer likes to be in the middle of the action and get more match time to fine-tune their craft. I hope we have left all of this behind, and the focus is on football and the new administration has a proper plan and structure for the coming years on developing football right from the grassroots to the professional level.

Of course, I am always going to be biased towards developing women’s football and growing the sport because everybody understands and knows the true potential of what we can achieve in women’s football.

I hope that the administration also feels the same way and can come up with a strong program and a strong plan to be executed for the long term and has a systematic approach to developing women’s football in the country.