Sunil Chhetri is playing his third AFC Asian Cup, the other two editions being in 2011 and 2019

June 12, 2005, was when a certain 20-year-old striker stepped on to the pitch in Quetta, Pakistan, to clock his first international game for the Blue Tigers.

Nineteen years, 145 international matches, and 93 goals later, a 39-year-old Sunil Chhetri is seen going through a daily transformation, as he, along with the Blue Tigers, prepare for the upcoming AFC Asian Cup 2023, in Doha, Qatar.

For it is when the India captain takes to the pitch, that he transfigures himself into an 18-year-old playing for the love of the beautiful game.

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