jayakris wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 2:36 pm
VReddy wrote: ↑Sun Nov 19, 2017 8:03 amAthletes living abroad would be more likely to choose India if the govt allowed dual nationality. Nobody in their right mind is going to give up a USA/UK/AUS passport for an Indian only passport.
They all say this line, but at least as far as the U.S. is concerned, it is not the end of the world if you really want to play for India. Give up the citizenship and have your parents or somebody just sponsor you to be a Green card (which can happen fairly fast in 2-3 years). Hey, I have lived on a green card in the USA for about 25 years now since I was eligible for a citizenship - and I never changed my citizenship. For almost all practical purposes, there is hardly much difference except voting rights, and having to get visas to travel to some countries. They will have to get visas to some places like Indian players have to. If you aren't even ready to apply for 3 or 4 visas a year, that you will invariably get like all Indian players - what the heck are you willing to do for India anyway?
If you really want to play for India, have sufficient respect for India to do what other Indians have to do, respect even the Indian laws that you don't like, and take some minimal trouble that so many Indians and Indian citizens residing abroad do. If they can't do that, and are not taking the time to analyze this enough to see that the sky won't fall if they become an Indian citizen, maybe they really are not the kind we Indians can look at as one of our own - one who feels he/she is an Indian. I don't really want to see India do what S.Arabia does in their sports teams with African imports. That kind of dubious glory is rather meaningless.
Admittedly, my opinions on this subject have changed a bit over time. I have written in the past rather passionately about how we shouldn't keep out players like Stephen Amritraj or Neha Uberoi who actually do have deep love for India, which I knew personally. But I also know others who didn't have much of an idea of India, like Sunitha Rao. Either way, prove to India that you can at least take some minimal trouble to get an Indian citizenship. Otherwise, too bad.
Thats an interesting view point, Jay. My viewpoints on this topic have been changing as I have been getting exposed more and more to Tech and its future. The entire globe is so connected now and the distances are shrinking so rapidly. [Earlier it would take 7 hrs to travel from my village in telangana to Hyderabd. Where now, on the same lines, I had couple of times on Friday afternoon decided to visit my Mom and it took me roughly the same time as I was able to visit her by Friday mid-night and be back in office in Zürich on Tuesday - thankfully this route flight prices don't fluctuate much]. In 20 years (by the time I start touching say 50s), we would likely have Hyperloop / similar technologies in place. It might sound absurd but 20 yrs back i.e., 1997 we were still using landline, I didn't know anyone who used Internet and so on - so it is indeed very probable. As you know, we are at the hockey stick phase vis-a-vis tech impact on our lives. Most of my colleagues from Kolkata these days prefer working in Singapore than Hyderabad as they have better connectivity from there (in addition to financial offering ofcourse).
My views are highly biased because probably I like Switzerland too. Anyway, should the Indian'ness be defined by a mere citizenship? For example - my hobbies are around travel/mountaineering/hiking/Tennis - now for me, a non-Indian passport would offer me way better options for my hobbies than Indian passport and so I don't think twice. However, I am equally passionate about trying to do my bit to where my roots are from (in addition to where i live). So as I slowly get more and more stable financially, I expect myself to pedal the gas on a slightly similar vein as an activist / Nature conversationist / Tennis or Hiking related causes (might be virtually or physically - whichever) both in India / wherever I live - for me that matters more than the passport.
Thanks to that interview thing, I had a call with Laxmi Poruri - it was clear to me from her talk that she was way more proud of her Indian Heritage / Culture / Telugu roots than I see in lot of people - which was a pleasant surprise actually. She is a US Citizen but for me, she is as Indian as anybody I know.
People might put the arguement that its unfair for a person who toiled hard in India vis-a-vis a player who came out of the USTA system but with that logic, how fair is it that a player from poor family background or coming from rural india has to compete against these new age players who are mostly getting trained in Germany / France / Spain - so there is huge difference in access within India itself and it is a delicate topic .. a bit similar to reservations in India. Probably if Poojashree had similar background / was present during these days, she would have been a top-200 player for sure.
Anyway long story short, my point is, in about 20-40 yrs, countries will become like counties/states. The powers-to-be will ensure country concept will still remain strong but I feel, still keeping the same high regard for passport/citizenship may not be as appropriate in the future. Probably I am biased and my views are different usually anyway on some of these issues.