The Hindu : The plight of Mohd. Yousuf Khan

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jul 14, 2003

Sport

Sport - Football

The plight of Mohd. Yousuf Khan

By V.V. Subrahamayam

HYDERABAD JULY 13. Failing health and diminishing support.

This could well sum up the plight of the mid-field general of yesteryear, Mohd. Yousuf Khan. The 67-year-old, 1960 Rome Olympian may have brought the best of defences to its knees on his day but now, in the twilight of his life, is waging a grim battle for survival, almost on his own with little support coming by.

Staying in an unobtrusive home in Noorkhan Bazar near Charminar, this ageing footballer is clearly wondering whether players of his generation were right in sacrificing so much on the personal front, not even concerned about health, to earn name and fame for the country.

Three head injuries during his playing days are now cited as the cause for the Parkinson's Syndrome he has been suffering from 1994. Since then, he has not been the same communicative footballer, who was a regular at the few tournaments in the twin cities.

Yousuf Khan is now in real bad shape. Not just in terms of lapse of memory but in the last two months, his health has deteriorated badly.

However, as they say, appearances are always deceptive. A look at the star player of the golden era of Hyderabad football may not necessarily reflect the gravity of the situation for there is still some radiance left on the face.

His legs, which created magic on the field, are now swollen and are unable to support him. His struggle to walk even a few paces at home and feeling pain while getting up may indicate that the champion player is going through a real torture. It's a sight that any sportsperson would not dare dream about in the worst of scenarios.

It is a tragedy that Yousuf Khan is now being forced to live on the Rs. 3500 monthly pension which he gets by virtue of retiring from the Police Department and the Central Government monthly grant of Rs. 2000. But, most of that is spent towards his medical expenses with little to cater to the needs of his family members — one son (who is earning a little through tuitions) and five daughters.

Worse, even the Rs. 50,000, presented sometime back by Mr. H.J.Dora, former DGP and president of AP Olympic Association, is now blocked in a private finance firm which is fast winding up the show and has not even paid the Rs. 700 monthly interest for the last six months.

Quite fortunately, even in adversity, the face of the legend called Yousuf Khan lit up when he saw his only other Hyderabad team-mate in the 1962 Asian Games gold medal winning squad, D.M.K. Afzal. The eyes turned tears misty when the past master quickly realised that he could not speak fluently in view of the lapse of recent memory.

All that he could say was: "I wonder whether this is the reward any sportsperson of that era is destined to". A touching remark that should set into motion the thought process of the powers-that-be.

Sports is not just about basking in the glory of an individual or a team which has won laurels. It is pertinent to look back and beyond the scenes to realise the grim reality.

Maybe the time has come for the State government to show a noble gesture by at least announcing that all the medical expenses of Yousuf Khan would be reimbursed. This would provide the much-needed psychological relief to the family members and at the same time ensure treatment in a super speciality hospital.

After all, celebrities like Yousuf Khan, who played for the sheer love of the country and was paid absolutely nothing in those days, are a National treasure. He was one of the two Indians picked for the 1965 Asian All Star team and represented AP Police which contributed immensely to the golden phase of Indian football by winning almost every Cup that was at stake when the late Rahim was the coach.

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