Sisters from Jodhpur shine in state-level kabaddi meet
JAIPUR:“I used to smile watching little girls of my family rolling, thumping and raiding each other’s team in the mud near the tube well of our farmland in the village. Little did I know that I’ll watch them do the same, in fact, performing better at a professional match in the state,” said Pawan Kumar Bishnoi, father of 14-year-old Saroja who is part of a 12-member team from Jodhpur district contesting in the state-level kabaddi competition.
On September 16, a team of 12 girls from Shri Ram Public Senior Secondary School, Lodta (Jodhpur) won a district-level tournament of kabaddi in under-17 category. Of 12 members of the team, seven main members of the team belonged to one family.
Pawan Kumar Bishnoi (37) along with his extended family lives in Lodta village where many members of the family have been local kabaddi and wrestling players. Bishnoi’s extended family comprises not only his siblings but his first cousins, all of whom sent their daughters to the same school and taught them to play kabaddi. Watching the elders of the family playing kabaddi in the village, the kids of the family, both boys and girls, started to play kabaddi as a pass time, said Bishnoi.
“The kids used to watch us and kept imitating us. The elders therefore taught some basic skills to the kids as they were growing up. We observed that the little girls of the family played the game as enthusiastically as the little boys. Therefore we taught them too and then it became a daily pass time for them after school,” said Bishnoi. “We never thought of playing it professionally but then we sent all the girls to the same school nearby where the principal of the school realised the potential in the girls in the game,” he added.
Principal of the school Surendra Singh Devraj noticed the agility and concentrated approach of the girls towards sports while they played sports in school. “It was in 2018 that I saw these sisters playing sports in the school. I knew that an under-14 event for kabaddi is coming up. We did not have any coach in the school then but then I motivated the students and their parents to participate in the game,” said Devraj.
The team did not win in flying colours then but of the members, 13-year-old Priyanka Bishnoi was selected to play the state-level matches and national level competition. “This motivated me to get a coach for kabaddi in school. This year we gave coaching to the girls to play in under-17 category and the team bagged gold medal on Sepember 16,” said Devraj. All girls from the family are of 13, 14 and 15 years with Priyanka Bishnoi being the team captain.
Devraj said that the seven main members of the winning team being from one single family is a coincidence, however, he believes that getting exposure to the game at an early age and proper nutrition given to the girls by the family is a decisive factor.
“The family which girls come from is a family of sportsmen. There has never been any disparity in terms of nutrition for girls at home. Though all the girls coming from the same family might seem a coincidence, but early and guided exposure to sports along with proper nutrition played its part,” said Devraj. Four girls from the school -Priyanka Bishnoi, Sabeena Bishnoi (14), Seema Bishnoi (15), and Saroj -- were picked by the selection committee to play in the state-level match held in Jhunjhunu district.
On Saturday, the under-17 kabaddi team from Jodhpur defeated the team of Sirohi district in the state-level match. Surendra Manda, coach of team, said the team has been performing well and is in full form for playing the matches. “The girls are motivated and are doing well. In the first match, they defeated a team from Sirohi. These girls have set an example for not only the village but for the entire state. I am sure that they will win the other matches and we will go back to our villages with our heads held high,” said Manda.