Sons of soil reap their toil

Indian hockey is replete with numerous stories of youngsters overcoming extremely modest backgrounds to achieve their dreams of donning the national colours. On August 17, barring the unforeseen, two youngsters with equally humble upbringings and struggles will realise their childhood dreams.

Shamsher Singh and Ashis Kumar Topno, both sons of farmers, will be earning their maiden senior international caps at the Olympic Test Event, to be held in Toyko from August 17-21.

"It's a dream come true to be in the senior camp and totally unbelievable that I would be representing my country very soon," gushed Shamsher following an intense training session at Sports Authority of India South Centre here on Tuesday.

Topno, standing beside Shamsher, echoed his team-mate's thoughts. "Although Odisha has produced several great hockey players, I never imagined I would reach this level. Training in the senior camp and then earning a call-up to an international event, it's all a dream at the moment for me."

While both the players are still in wonderland over the sudden transformation in their career, they both have had to work extremely hard to gain the attention of the national selectors.

Shamsher, 22 years old, hails from Attari district, a town very close to the India-Pakistan border in Amritsar. He started playing hockey out of passion as a kid and very soon his interest began to grow. His first fillip came when he was picked to train at the renowned Surjit Singh Hockey Academy in Jalandhar where he honed his skills from the seventh standard till 12th grade.

In 2016 the striker cum midfielder made his junior international debut and toured with the team three times. He went off the radar in 2017 but earned a call-up to the senior probables' camp in July before being named in the Test Event side.

"I never thought I would reach this level. The last two years, I've been working very hard. Like most kids from humble backgrounds, I too had my share of difficulties but my parents supported me a lot. Much of my growth belongs to them."

Topno, the eldest of seven kids, struggled to even buy a hockey stick during the early part of his childhood in Rourkela. His break came when he went to study at the Sports Hostel in Panposh from sixth to 10th standard. After schooling, he moved to Bhubaneswar to train at the Kalinga Stadium.

Unlike Shamsher, the 21-year-old midfielder Topno was not in the reckoning during his junior days and only managed to make an impression at the senior nationals two years ago that earned him a call-up to the probables' camp. Topno struggled to adjust to the levels of the senior side and was instantly banished following the conclusion of the camp. He then worked hard on his game to make the camp again last month.

Coach Graham Reid was pleasantly surprised with the talent and potential Shamsher and Topno have shown so far. "I normally don't like talking too much about individual players. Ashis hasn't had too much experience at this level, so it's been about trying to get him to this level -- tactics and strategy. His skills on the ball are beautiful to watch. We've been improving his tackling. I'm looking forward to seeing what sort of debut he can make for India."

The Australian was effusive in his praise of Shamsher. "Shamsher is an Australian style of player. He's strong on the ball, he's fast, he's very smart and a very intelligent guy. He understands what we are trying to do with the press. He's flexible, he can play in the strikeline and also in the midfield. So he ticks off a lot of boxes that I look forward to in players."

Both players, while hailing senior striker SV Sunil for the mentorship provided, are now determined to prove Reid right in Tokyo.