New Delhi, Mar 21 : An avid ‘Chelsea' fan, actor Abhishek Bachchan believes India has the talent to excel in football but lacks the infrastructure and support for the game.
The actor says his ultimate dream would be to see the country's football team in the World Cup finals. “I would like to do whatever I can to popularise this sport.
My dream would be to see Indian team in the world cup finals. I think we have the talent but we need to get the right infrastructure and right support,” Abhishek told PTI in an interview.
The 37-year-old actor believes that once the public starts supporting football, the authorities will be forced to improve the infrastructure.
“I think the youth of India is currently tilting more towards football than cricket. Why not set a goal that by 2020 we would be a competitive football nation,” he said.
Abhishek and cricketer Virat Kohli were in the city last evening to launch the inaugural charity match between Bollywood stars and Indian cricketers on March 30 in Jawaharlal Nehru stadium.
They unveiled the jersey and the trophy for the match called ‘Playing for humanity'. The event also marked the launch of ‘Virat Kohli foundation'.
The junior Bachchan will lead the squad for the ‘All-Stars Football Club' against Virat's ‘All Heart Football Club' to raise money for a charity organisation called ‘Magic Bus', which works for underprivileged children.
When asked whether his little daughter Aaradhya and actress wife Aishwariya will come to cheer him in Delhi during the match, Abhishek said, “Lets see. I hope they can make it across.”
On competing with cricketing stars of the country, Abhishek said, “Virat has a highly accomplished team. They are going to take care of the competitiveness while are
responsible for the entertainment.
We know who we are up against—the best sports persons that the country has to offer. We would like to be as competitive as possible.”
The actor's 28-member star-studded team comprises of Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Leander Paes, Marc Robinson, Amit Sadh, Shabir ahluwalia, Raj Kundra and others from the industry.
While Kohli's team comprises of Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Yuvraaj singh among others.
The actor also revealed that he has been a basketball player in his childhood and wining an inter-school basketball championship was the highlight of his childhood.
“'Playing for humanity' is an idea which a bunch of very passionate football fans came up with. It was started and conceptualised by Bunty Walia and GS Entertainment.
And we decided to play together primarily to popularise the sport and raise money for the charity,” said Abhishek.
