Sitting on board the Rajdhani Express on Tuesday, Pritam Rani Siwach was experiencing all kinds of emotions. Anxiety, curiosity and eagerness swept over the former India captain as she travelled to Bhubaneswar to watch India take on Belgium in the quarter-finals of the Junior Hockey World Cup on Wednesday.
Pritam Rani Siwach with son Yashdeep (Hockey India)
Her restlessness was understandable. Her son Yashdeep, 20, was in all probability going to play the most important match of his young career, which could impact his future career. Pritam though is not too worried as "hockey is in our DNA."
It indeed is. One of the finest centre-forwards the country has produced, Pritam’s India career lasted 16 years—from her debut at the 1991 Indira Gandhi Gold Cup to the Olympic qualifiers in 2007. Her husband Kuldeep Siwach played for Railways and was also selected for an India camp before a back injury cut short his career. Their daughter Kanika, 16, plays for Haryana at the sub-junior level, having also taken part in the Khelo India Youth Games.
“It was inevitable. His parents are hockey players, we would watch, talk and discuss hockey at all times at home, so I guess it was natural that our kids also picked up the sport,” said Pritam, who was part of the victorious 2002 Commonwealth Games squad in Manchester—the only title India, men or women, have won in the Games—beating England in their backyard.
“Yashdeep used to watch me and my husband play and teach hockey while accompanying us to our academy, picking up the game there. Also, he is inherently very competitive. When he was younger, he would challenge me to race against him, saying ‘mom, I can beat you’,” says Pritam, who captained India to the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games silver.
Yashdeep echoes his mother: “Hockey is in my blood. I have always followed my mother’s example and have wished to emulate her achievements. The first time ever that I visited a hockey ground was with her. I started training with my mother being my first proper coach,” said the defender, who also idolises former India captain Sardar Singh and current skipper Manpreet Singh.
Though he was also academically inclined, Yashdeep was keen on sports, dabbling in athletics, tennis, swimming and horse riding before taking up hockey in his mid-teens.
Yashdeep really started to enjoy the sport and that interest translated into impressive on-field performances, earning selection to the Haryana state team. His game rapidly improved in a short span, and his performances at the 2017 junior nationals was noticed by the scouts who selected him for the national camp at Sports Authority of India’s (SAI) Bengaluru centre.
Soon came the time to make a critical decision, for the teenager and the family—to pursue a career in hockey or focus on studies. “Studying and playing sport together is difficult. We told him that if he wants to play he won’t be able to give enough time to studies as he will be in camps, state or national. He has still managed to continue his education,” Pritam said of Yashdeep, who is pursuing Bachelor of Arts.
Joining the national set-up was a new experience as he had never lived away from home. But the youngster saw that as an opportunity to learn from his teammates as well as the senior team that was training at the same centre. “As my interest grew in the sport, there was no looking back. I used to closely watch the seniors train and speak to some of them. It was a chance for me to learn quickly and improve my game,” he said.
Yashdeep soon became an integral part of the India colts, featuring in almost all the major tournaments including the 2019 Sultan of Johor Cup in Malaysia where the team clinched silver.
Pritam has continued coaching at her academy in Sonepat, which she started during her playing days in the early 2000s. The Pritam Siwach Hockey Academy trains around 200 underprivileged girls from rural background, providing them equipment and building hopes of a future in the sport.
Her desire to serve the sport bore fruit with her wards Neha Goyal, Nisha Warsi and Sharmila Devi were selected in the Indian women’s team for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where they finished a historic fourth.
The year got sweeter when Pritam received the Dronacharya award in November for coaching excellence, making her one of the few to win the Arjuna Award as a player and the Dronacharya. But nothing could match her delight after her son was selected in India’s Junior World Cup team.
Pritam, who reached the Odisha capital on Tuesday evening, is upbeat. “I am going to see how my son plays; very hopeful India will reach not just the semis but also the final. The first match was an upset (loss to France) which can happen to any big team, but the comeback has been very good. The boys are performing well and are, step-by-step, regaining the flow,” she said.
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