MUMBAI: They do not always come from the big, boon towns. Even small nondescript towns or sleepy hamlets throw up champions or outstanding performers.
Last week in India we had three such sportspersons hitting the headlines. India’s new tennis sensation Somdev Devvarman, born in Agartala, the capital of the small state of Tripura in the North East, did something which no other countryman had done before him. He made the final of an ATP event, beating former world No. 1 Carlos Moyo on the way.
Although the ultimate title just eluded him, he did give glimpses of the form that is going to make him a known name in world tennis henceforth.
Then, amongst the big newsmakers were two hockey players hailing from the same village of Shahbad Markand near Ambala, on the way from Delhi to Chandigarh.
As one drives on the famous GT expressway, one may not even see the signboard to this village inhabitated by around 35,000 people. But belonging to this place are the captains of the Indian men’s and women’s international hockey teams.
Drag-flicker penalty-corner expert and defender Sandeep Singh has been named captain for India’s tour of Argentina and for the four-nation tournament that follows.
Surinder Kaur has been nominated captain of the Indian women’s team. It is rare that captains of both teams should be from the same village.
One is reminded of the village of Sansarpur, just outside Jalandhar in Punjab. What is unique about this place is that no less than 14 of India’s Olympic gold medal-winners hailed from this village.
They have been the members of the Indian hockey teams over the years. This place has now stopped producing Olympian hockey players. In fact, it was 37 years ago that India last won an Olympic medal in hockey.
Although, it was for the first time that India did not even play hockey at the Olympics, the Beijing Games was the country’s best in terms of individual medals, one gold and two bronzes.
While the Chandigarh shooter Abhinav Bindra won India’s first ever individual Olympic gold medal, the two bronzes again were brought home by men from small towns.
Boxer Vijender Singh hails from Bhiwani in Haryana and Sushil Kumar from Najafgarh, a township close to Delhi, made famous by swashbuckling Virendra Sehwag.
This episode of small-town guys making it big in the world of sports would not be complete without the mention of India’s ever-so-popular cricket captain, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who is from Ranchi in the little-known state of Jharkhand.
