Times of India: Mandeep Singh, a jovial striker living his dream
Feroz Khan
BHUBANESWAR: Mandeep Singh was five when he decided that he wanted to play hockey. To make a decision that would dictate his entire course of life, at such a raw age came easy to him, and not just because he hails from Punjab, a state that has over the years ensured a healthy supply of hockey stars to the Indian national team. His older brother was into hockey and that helped.
But Mandeep was at an impressionable age, when he would have heard the Indian cricket team getting the better of Australia in near-miraculous fashion in the intervening period between February and March of 2001. You must have been living under a giant rock if you were an Indian, alive, and not known about Sourav Ganguly and his side that stitched memorable victories and blocked Australia’s path to global domination in Test cricket.
Mandeep, a sports lover, was well aware. It was natural to have that attraction to the game. Mandeep wasn’t untouched as he admitted, ‘his mood was more towards cricket’. However, watching his brother play hockey every day left an impression and with time and his mood changed.
And what a great decision it turned out be. In his late teenage years, Mandeep was making waves at the Hockey India League which was followed by two World Cups for the Indian hockey team in the space of one year – at junior (2013) and senior (2014) level. Two years later, he was a part of the team that won the junior World Cup at home.
“I was five when I started playing hockey,” Mandeep tells TOI Sports. “My brother used to play and I followed in his footsteps. Initially, my mind was more inclined towards playing cricket. But then I used to watch my brother play hockey. Slowly and gradually, my mood changed and I started loving hockey.”
After developing his love for hockey, Mandeep began dreaming. He dreamt of representing India, of becoming a hockey star and playing alongside his favourites – Sandeep Singh and Sardar Singh.
“I used to watch Sardar Singh and Sandeep Singh on TV; they were my favourites. It was my dream to play with these two. Manpreet Singh and I used to play together and he made it to the Indian team before me. So I always used to think about getting a chance to join the national team and play with these superstars,” he said while remembering the days when he watched his idols on TV before getting a chance to meet them and later play alongside them.
Mandeep has, as of date, 85 caps for India and been part of the national setup for some time. He has seen highs and lows, injuries and dips in form. That would make anyone mature enough for their age. But Mandeep still exudes the charm of a youngster – giggling every few minutes, not shy of admitting that he is one of the biggest pranksters of the team.
For Mandeep, having fun remains a major part of his life and it becomes clear when he suddenly, midway through a sentence, turns his attention towards his team-mates at the other end of the pitch where they are playing a prank on their captain Manpreet. He watches the entire performance, sniggering, hopefully wanting to be closer to the action. Though as the hoopla around the prank dies down, Mandeep is back to completing the sentence, picking up right from where he left off.
“It’s me. I am the biggest prankster,” comes his reply when asked who the naughtiest character in the team is. “I like laughing. You can ask anyone – I never get angry. Manpreet is also quite a funny guy.”
But Mandeep is not just about pranks and jokes. The journey towards playing for the country hasn’t been a joyride. From a young age, he has been living away from his family to pursue his dream and he admits that being on the road hasn’t always been ca cakewalk.
“I have stayed away from my home for a long period. To become a professional hockey player, you must make some personal sacrifices. You will have to give up either your dream or living with family. I have been living in hostels, different hockey academies, continuously travelling for nationals. But my family has been supportive all through. They wanted me to play. I’ve worked really hard,” the 22-year-old says.
When he was fully devoted to hockey, Mandeep never compromised on getting a good education. In fact, when he was living in a hostel, his family had arranged for a tutor who would, without fail, turn up at the facility for daily evening lessons.
“When in hostel, a teacher used to come especially from my village to give me tuitions every day for two hours from 6 pm for tests and lessons,” he said.
Did he ever get distracted from studies? “Sometimes yes. But you know studying is important too. It allows the brain to develop and focus better. Even now, I take English classes whenever free.”
At the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup earlier this year, Mandeep became India’s saviour when Japan, a team ranked well below them, threatened to pull off an upset. His hat-trick not only rescued India from a potential embarrassment but also gave them a narrow 4-3 win. His more famous hat-trick was when India got the better of the then-Olympic champions Germany for a come-from-behind 5-4 win at the Hockey World League Final. Mandeep calls these two matches as his best moments with the national team.
“Sultan Azlan Shah was a good tournament for me where against Japan I scored a hat-trick. Then in New Delhi (HWL 2015) when I scored a hat-trick against Germany,” he said.
Life is all about hockey for the young star and it keeps him busy, though he does like shopping. “I remain busy with hockey. So, there’s not much time to do anything else apart from hockey. But I do like shopping. I do a lot of shopping,” he says with a smile.
Mandeep is a confident striker who eagerly aims to improve with each game and promises that his team will not disappoint the home crowd at the ongoing HWL Final.
“When we are on the pitch, our focus is only on the game. It’s our home crowd and we promise we won’t disappoint them. These three matches (league stages) are going to teach us a lot. Obviously, the quarterfinal is where we have to be at our best and we will give our best no matter whom we face there. Whatever mistakes we have committed so far, we will rectify them,” Mandeep says.
Mandeep will hope to take home happy memories and rectify mistakes his mistakes when the tournament ends and will aim for cementing his spot in the team, hoping for a repeat of his Germany and Japan heroics.