Rugby may not be the most popular sport in India, but with Delhi hosting the Commonwealth Games, the Indian Rugby team is making the right noises.

By Himanshu Shekhar

Recently, the Indian rugby team won the prestigious English Inter Club tournament at the ancestral home of Barbarians Rugby, raising India’s medal hopes in the CWG. Led by young captain Naseer Hussain, Team India triumphed by beating top English clubs like Yorkshire all stars, British Asian Rugby Association.

ESPNSTAR.com caught up with India captain Nasser Hussain, who promised more. “It is always proud to represent India. As a captain I feel proud to lead my country at international sporting event,” Hussain said.

On being asked about India’s medal chances in Commonwealth Games, India captain said, “A medal at this stage would really be a daunting task and bit unrealistic at this moment. We are ranked 73rd in world rankings at the moment and if we manage to beat one of the top-notch teams, then, that in itself would be a big achievement.

“Preparation wise we are doing our best in whatever limited resources we have had till now. We will go to Asian 7’s first and then we will organize a CWG preparatory camp form 20th of September in New Delhi.”

But one thing which is hurting India captain is the treatment meted to non cricket sports in India.

“It is a shame that the ground used for international rugby matches during Delhi CWG will be used for cricket matches after the mega even gets over in city.”

“We were expecting that we will have one dedicated rugby ground at-least after the event but unfortunately it won’t happen and we won’t have any memories and legacy after the CWG,” a disappointed India captain told your website.