At 38, Sunil Chhetri continues to produce masterclass; what makes him an unstoppable crowd puller?

'Immortal No. 11' was written on a huge banner that was hung from the West Block Blues Stand. Sunil Chhetri was given a passionate homage by the crowd, which applauded each move the Indian skipper made on the field. When India defeated Pakistan 4-0 in the SAFF Championship game at the Sree Kanteerava Stadium, Bengaluru, several of them repeatedly invaded the field in an attempt to get closer to Chhetri.

Also read: SAFF Championship 2023: How Sunil Chhetri's hat-trick powered India's win over Pakistan in Bengaluru - WATCH

What then makes Chhetri a popular figure and an unstoppable crowd-puller? He is 38 years old, when athletes typically consider adopting less demanding careers than football and adhere to strict training regimens.

Chhetri's on-field performance, though, still bears no relation to his age. In the Intercontinental Cup final last Saturday in Odisha, India defeated Lebanon, a side higher in the FIFA rankings, 2-0, and Chhetri's opening strike put the squad on the winning path.

The situation remained the same on a wet Wednesday in Bengaluru. Chhetri could not have missed the impression that the entire stadium's patrons wanted nothing less than a victory. His desire to rule the main stage may have been fueled in part by the ongoing India vs. Pakistan conflict. He had let us see a glimpse of that emotion inside of him.

"Before the Pakistan match, whenever we met the boys, it was all hunky dory. Even when I was in Pakistan once or twice we were all fine and friendly. They speak Punjabi and we speak Punjabi, the moment the whistle blows I don't know what happens," Chettri had said in an ISL video.

"It's by default, just the sense of anyone but them. Maybe it's ingrained in our upbringing as Indians and I'm pretty sure they will say the same thing. The hostility, the fact that we don't want to lose against them comes in," he added.

An apex predator with a keen sense of direction, Chhetri. That will be attested to by the striker's 90 goals from 138 outings for India, who is currently fourth on the list of all-time leading international goal scorers, trailing only Lionel Messi (103), Ali Daei (109), and Cristiano Ronaldo (123).

When he scored the opening goal against Pakistan last night, that instinct was clearly visible. Chhetri chased after the pass made by Pakistani player Abullah Iqbal to custodian Saqib Hanif like a cheetah stalking a deer in those Kruger footage.

Also read: SAFF Championship 2023: Massive brawl breaks out between India, Pakistan players; Stimac sent off (WATCH)

At that point, Chhetri and many of us who still adored a 20-something man who made his India debut against the same opponent in Quetta reduced 38 to a meaningless number.

Hanif erred in clearing the ball after becoming alarmed by Chhetri's sudden rush towards him, and the Indian needed no further encouragement to take advantage of the opportunity that was now his.

For someone with Chhetri's abilities, the two subsequent penalty kicks might have been a walk in the park. Numerous lock-screen and home screen backgrounds will include that image for some time to come. Thousands of mobile cameras in the stands opened their eyes to capture that Chhetri moment.

But despite scoring a hat-trick, he didn't come off as arrogant. He analysed the entire situation logically and without hyperbole. Perhaps it was the only time that night that his age was apparent.

"More happy that we kept a clean sheet, that was our first target and very happy to be back at the fortress (Kanteerava Stadium is home to BFC in ISL). But in international football, getting goals is not easy irrespective of where you are playing, whom you are playing. But we have a lot to improve as matches from hereon will be tough, and we are aware of the areas to improve," Chhetri said after the match against Pakistan.

Also read: Sunil Chhetri becomes fourth-highest International Goal Scorer, closes in on Messi and Ronaldo

That perfectionism-driven attention is downright terrifying. How long can Chhetri go down that demanding path at the age of 38? Chhetri will eventually have to retire into the inevitable sunset that awaits all athletes, and we are hearing a lot of names like Ishan Pandita as potential successors.

But we'll get to that later. Let's enjoy this daydreaming journey with Chhetri for the moment!