‘Rampal is a rare talent’
Dronacharya Award-winning coach Baldev Singh is a proud man after his girls created history at by winning a bronze medal at the junior women’s hockey World Cup in Monchengladbach, Germany.
One of his favourite students, Rani Rampal, emerged as the player of the tournament and the coach says the 19-year-old is a rare talent and will serve the country long.
“She has the killer instinct. She was different from other girls and picked up the game really fast. She is definitely a rare talent,” Singh was quoted as saying.
Out of the six players — Navjot, Manjeet Kaur, Navneet Kaur, Rampal, Monika and Poonam Rani — in the team who are from Haryana, five hail from Shahbad while one belongs to Hisar.
“It’s a proud moment for us. The win will definitely boost the morale of the girls and encourage them to do even better,” said Singh, the coach of the Shahbad Hockey Academy.
While most of the girls come from humble backgrounds, Rani in particular came from an ordinary family and even the hockey stick and her kit was once given to her by Singh as she could not afford it.
While Rani’s father is a cart-puller, her elder brother is a carpenter. “She used to travel walk to the Academy. She later purchased a bicycle and today her success story has made everyone proud,” the coach said.
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