Swadesha Sharma

Priti David

Editor

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The
popular name is ‘Virat Kohli’. India’s cricketing icon has many fans here in
Dungra Chhota. 

It’s
after 10 on a winter morning and the dozen or so young residents are engrossed
in a game. The square patch of open land flanked by bright green corn fields
will not strike you as a cricket field, but the cricket enthusiasts of this
village in Banswara district know each and every yard of it, from the popping
crease to the boundary line. 

Everyone
knows the most effective way of striking up a conversation with cricket fans is
to ask about their favourite players. Here, it may be Virat Kohli to start
with, but other names also get thrown up soon enough – Rohit Sharma, Jasprit
Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Mohammed Siraj…

Finally,
18-year-old Shivam Labana adds, “I like Smriti Mandhana.” The left-handed
opening batter and ex-captain of the India Women T20 squad is one of the most
popular cricketers in the country.

But
she is not the only left-handed batter being discussed on this field, as we
soon find out.

Among the gaggle of aspiring bowlers and batters
– all boys – the single girl stands out. Just nine years old, Hitakshi Rahul
Harkishi is fully kitted in white shoes and batting pads with thigh and elbow
guards securely strapped onto her slight frame.

“I want to be a batsman. Mereko sabse acchi lagti hai batting [I love batting the most],”
she tells PARI.  “Main India ke liye khelna
chahungi [I want to play for India],” she declares. Not so keen on talking,
Hitakshi is however more than willing to stand at the crease and demonstrate
her game. Walking up the hard pitch she hits a few season ball deliveries into
the chain-link fencing that works as the net.

Hitakshi’s
desire to play for India is supported by her father who is also her coach. She
reels off her schedule: “After school I come home and sleep for an hour. Then I
train from four to eight [in the evening].” On weekends and holidays like
today, she also trains in the morning from around 7:30 a.m. to noon.

“We have been training continuously for around
14 months now. I also need to train along with her,” says her father, Rahul
Harkishi speaking to PARI in January 2024. He is the owner of a vehicle garage in Dungra Bada, Banswara district of
Rajasthan. Proud and confident of his daughter’s abilities he says, “Shaandaar playing hai [She plays really well]. As a father I shouldn’t be strict
with her but I have to be.”

Her
parents also ensure a healthy diet for her. “We have eggs four times a week,
and some meat too,” Rahul informs. “She also drinks two glasses of milk
everyday as well as cucumber and carrots in salad.”

The
effort shines through in Hitakshi’s play. She is used to practising with older
players like Shivam Labana, 18, and Ashish Labana, 15, two boys from Dungra
Chhota who have played at the district level. Both are bowlers and have been
participating in tournaments for 4-5 years now including the Labana Premier
League (LPL), where more than 60 teams from the Labana community compete
against each other.

“Back
when we first participated in the LPL, it was just us boys. We didn’t have
Rahul bhaiyya [Hitakshi’s father] as
coach then,” says Shivam. “I took five wickets in one of the matches.”

These days they also play for the Hitakshi Club
set up by Rahul. “We are training her [Hitakshi],” Shivam adds. “We want her to
debut in our team. Girls in our community don’t play [cricket] so we think it’s
good that she is.”

Luckily
for Hitakshi, her parents are dreaming differently as one of her young team
mates says, “Unka dream hai usko aage bhejenge [They have a
dream of sending her ahead].” 

Despite
the popularity of the sport, families hesitate to let their children pursue
cricket. Shivam mentions a 15-year-old teammate’s similar situation, “He’s played
at the state level multiple times and wants to continue but is thinking of
leaving. His family will probably send him to Kota.” Synonymous with coaching
classes and higher education, Kota seems as divorced from cricket as anything
can be.

Sheela Harkishi, Hitakshi’s mother, is a Hindi
teacher to primary and secondary school students. She too is a big cricket fan,
as everyone else in their family. “I know the name of every player in the
Indian team and I recognise them all. Although I like Rohit Sharma the most,”
she adds with a smile.

Other
than her work as a teacher, she also manages the garage where we meet her.
“Right now, we don’t have a lot of girls and boys from Rajasthan playing
cricket. We have tried a little for our daughter and we will keep trying.”

For
nine-year-year old Hitakshi there is still a long way to go but her parents are
determined to “do everything necessary to make her a skilled cricketer.”

“I don’t know what the future holds,” says
Rahul. “But as a father and as a good sportsman, I can say for sure that we
will have her play for India.”

‘I want to play for India’

’میں انڈیا کے لیے کھیلنا چاہتی ہوں‘

‘నేను భారతదేశం తరఫున ఆడాలనుకుంటున్నాను’

'இந்தியாவுக்காக விளையாட விரும்புகிறேன்'

'ਮੈਂ ਇੰਡੀਆ ਲਈ ਖੇਡਣਾ ਚਾਹੁੰਦੀ ਹਾਂ!'

‘ମୁଁ ଭାରତ ପାଇଁ ଖେଳିବାକୁ ଚାହୁଁଛି’

‘मला भारतासाठी खेळायचंय’

‘എനിക്ക് ഇന്ത്യയ്ക്കുവേണ്ടി കളിക്കണം’

'ನಾನು ಭಾರತದ ಪರವಾಗಿ ಆಡಬಯಸುತ್ತೇನೆ'

‘મારે ભારત માટે રમવું છે’

‘मंय भारत सेती खेले चाहत हवं’

‘हम इंडिया ला खेले चाहत बानी’

‘আমি ভারতের হয়ে খেলতে চাই’

‘মই ভাৰতৰ হৈ খেলিব বিচাৰোঁ’

‘मैं इंडिया के लिए खेलना चाहती हूं’

Kushalgarh

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‘I want to play for India’

The attention of cricket fans is on the T20 World Cup today. Meanwhile, the next generation of cricketers are hard at work across the country. Hitakshi is one of those hopefuls from Banswara, Rajasthan who at nine is already prepping to play for the country

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