Junior World Cup: Stage set for 21-year-old Vivek Sagar Prasad to underline standing as future India captain

It was solely by probability that India’s prodigious expertise, Vivek Sagar Prasad, acquired launched to hockey.
“He played a bit of cricket,” his elder brother Vidya Sagar says, “and some badminton.” At residence, the 2 brothers obsessed over chess, a ardour they share even at present.
One night, the priorities flipped. “There was a ground next to the ordnance factory near our house in Itarsi. It was mainly used to play cricket but a few people who worked at the factory used a small corner for hockey,” Vidya Sagar says.
Prasad reached the bottom one night to play cricket, however the hockey staff was falling in need of one participant. “So, they told him to grab a stick and just stand in defence,” Vidya Sagar provides. “That’s how it began. Theek-thaak he hogaya sab uske baad se (He’s done okay since).”
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‘Theek-thaak’ is a really delicate approach of describing Prasad’s flourishing profession.
Only 21, the second-youngest male participant ever to signify India has already amassed near 75 worldwide appearances, scored greater than a dozen objectives, led India to a Youth Olympics silver, received a bronze medal on the Olympics, the place he was one of many standout performers, named as International Hockey Federation’s rising star twice and is seen by many as the longer term captain of the nationwide staff.
Before that occurs, nonetheless, the centre-half must assist India’s U-21 staff, of which he’s the captain, navigate previous a really robust Belgium facet within the quarterfinals of the Junior World Cup on Wednesday. The type of stage, Hockey India’s former high-performance director David John says, the place Prasad will thrive.
“The occasion has never bothered him,” John says. “The bigger the occasion, the more he plays. He doesn’t shrink into himself. He actually wants to be the one to prove to the others that he is important, that he could execute (skills) under pressure.”
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John is aware of. In 2018, the Australian and India’s then-coach Sjoerd Marijne took a leap of religion and chosen a rookie 17-year-old for the tour to New Zealand – 17 years, 10 months and 22 days, to be actual. It made Prasad the second-youngest participant ever to play for India, behind the participant who ultimately made approach for him, former captain Sardar Singh, simply by 11 days.
From Marijne to John and former junior staff coach Jude Felix, everybody has been gushing over Prasad’s qualities – his quick choice making, means to wrong-foot the taller, bodily stronger opponents, steady actions within the midfield, means to attain objectives, fast palms, and management skills.
In New Zealand, his debut tour, the shortest man on the sphere stood out because the staff’s greatest participant.
Shane McLeod – the very best coach of the final decade, having taken Belgium to Olympic silver and gold, and a World Cup title in between – walked as much as John and Marijne after India’s match towards the European giants. “Who is this boy?” McLeod inquired, in keeping with John. “He’s outstanding.”
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The artistic, attack-minded midfielder’s abilities mesmerise the entire world now. But on the Prasad family, the youthful son’s hockey exploits have been stored a secret from the daddy, a major college trainer who needed his youngsters to give attention to research.
Prasad was solely seven years outdated when he was requested to fill in as a defender by the group that performed on the floor subsequent to Itarsi’s ordnance manufacturing unit. In an prompt, nonetheless, he was smitten and began enjoying recurrently with them, later turning into part of the native staff that travelled across the area to play matches.

“The family’s financial condition wasn’t that great, so our father was dead against any sporting activity. His target was to ensure we complete our studies and get a good job. Once, he even slapped Vivek for playing hockey,” Vidya Sagar, an engineer, laughs. “But since I was the elder of the two, his focus remained more on what I did. So Vivek continued playing without our father knowing.”
Prasad travelled on buses with out tickets, borrowed hockey sticks and wore his brother’s sneakers to make sure the household wasn’t burdened by his indulgence. His mom stored the again door of the home open for him to sneak out and in with out his father realizing. No one within the household, although, imagined it was something critical.
“One day, the coach of the local team he played for, came to our house to seek the permission of our parents to take Vivek for a tournament outside Bhopal,” Vidya Sagar says. “My father flatly refused. After a lot of convincing, he relented but only when I pointed out to him that the family won’t even have to spend a penny since all expenses would be taken care of.”
Prasad (proper) together with his brother Vidya Sagar (Express photograph)
So, a younger Prasad travelled to Akola to play towards males twice his measurement and age. It didn’t hassle him that the floor was tough and pebble-laden. With his deftness and anticipation, ball abilities and physique feints, Prasad glided on the grass area as if nobody existed.
At the tip of 1 match, Ashok Kumar, the previous India captain and legendary Dhyan Chand’s son, met Prasad close to the staff dugout and requested: “Bade level par kheloge?”
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In the years that adopted, Prasad reached past the extent even his mentor imagined. “But to reach this far, he has struggled a lot,” Vidya Sagar says. “Bohot ganda waala struggle.”
In November 2016, Prasad was battling for his life after a collarbone harm led to extreme issues. “It was so serious that before the surgery, doctors got an undertaking signed from my father that basically implied that if things got complicated, he could even die,” Vidya Sagar says. “Thankfully, it went well. But for 7-8 days after the operation, he couldn’t eat a morsel. Those days were a nightmare. But throughout that phase, Vivek was always smiling, never lost hope.”
He made a comeback in mid-2017. And then, after a outstanding rise, there was an much more outstanding drop in type. At the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Prasad seemed a shadow of himself; so poor that he was instantly dropped from the nationwide staff.
Vidya Sagar says the comparisons with Sardar began to play on the-then teenager’s thoughts and the stress of expectations positioned on him acquired to him as properly, resulting in a confidence disaster.
The hunch lasted for nearly a yr, a interval that noticed him return to the fundamentals. Prasad returned to the junior facet, main them to a podium end on the 2018 Youth Olympics and on the Sultan of Johor Cup in 2019. A string of constant performances paved the best way for his return to the senior squad, of which Prasad is now an integral half.
“He’s in a very good head space now,” Vidya Sagar says. “He was home after the Olympics for a while, got refreshed after a long season, we played a lot of chess and now he’s back on the field.” Where items are in place for him to make it huge.
It’s now Prasad’s transfer.