ISL 2022-23: "I learned a lot of things after that injury" - Komal Thatal looks back at some difficult times

Komal Thatal is one of the most promising young stars in the country, having been essential to India's campaign in the U-17 World Cup back in 2017. He then became the youngest player ever to play in an ISL match before going on to play for the Indian national team in the Asian Cup U23 Qualifiers.

The 22-year-old hails from Sikkim, joining the likes of Bhaichung Bhutia, Bikash Jairu, Phurba Lachenpa, Nirmal Chettri, and so many more as Sikkimese products to make it in Indian football. Like most players mentioned above, he too started playing football from an early age. In an interview with the Jamshedpur FC media team, he had the following to say:

"When I was a kid we used to play in the street. In school we get little time to play so we played 7-a-side anywhere we get a chance, be it a basketball court or road or anywhere. That's how it started when I was 7-8 years old. When I was around I think 9 or 10 I joined a football hostel. Since then I felt like I became a professional as I used to train 2 times a day, came back from school and trained, and in the morning we trained so that it became at an early age."

"We had ups and downs" - Komal Thatal opens up on his journey at the U17 World Cup

Komal Thatal played an integral role in the Indian squad at the 2017 U17 World Cup, where he says he learnt a lot from the experience. He was selected there after going through an extensive trial process.

Thatal took a walk down memory lane, speaking about his experiences ahead with the Indian U17 side in the run-up to the big tournament. He said:

"It began around 2013, they scouted me and from then after a few months we came to know we're gonna prepare for the world cup. We had ups and downs, there was a lot of players coming in and out every once in a week kind of things. We had a lot of trials and all that went during these 4 years brought some great exposure. We played with some very good teams and later on the U17world cup as well. It had been a competitive journey for those 4 years."

The Jamshedpur FC man suffered a career-threatening injury in December 2021, that eventually ruled him out for the season. Thatal calls it the most difficult period of his life.

The young winger believes the experience away from the game taught him the value of patience, teaching him the importance of recovery in the game of football.

"Injuries are a part of the journey you know, and I think I played all games till 7 or 8 and then unfortunately it happened and then it happened again. I was upset about it because I wanted to play till the end with the team and on top of that we won the league and it was the missing part for me. I think recovery is a part of the journey and it was hard. It took me about 4-5 months, from which I got to know how to be patient about it. I wanted to play games but nothing can be done at that time. I learned a lot of things after that injury."

"It's good" - Komal Thatal on his move to Jamshedpur FC

Komal Thatal was quite young when he signed for ATK (currently ATKMB) after the U17 World Cup. He was the youngest player to play a match in the ISL that season. But during his stint at ATK, Thatal didn't get too many games. In 2021, he switched sides to Jamshedpur FC with one eye on playing more football in a bid to further his career.

"It's a long journey, so when I joined ATK after the world cup I was quite young and always wanted to be a professional when I was young and playing so to get there was good. I had games there and I gained some experience, and to move to Jamshedpur and get more gametime and play… it's

While Jamshedpur FC won the League Winners' shield in the 2021-22 ISL season, they fell short of winning the whole thing as they were knocked out by Kerala Blasters in the semi-finals.

For Thatal, he only wishes for the team to repeat its heroics from last season and maybe go one step further even, only this time with him playing his part.

" I want to be a team player. It's always good when the team wins a title or something like that so I want to put my part in it, do everything I can, work on the philosophy with the coach and hopefully it will be a good season this year."