CHENNAI: Grandfather wanted her to become a wrestler but Priya Malik gave the idea a serious thought only after watching talented Anshu Malik from close quarters. Hailing from the same village, Nidani in Jind district (Haryana), Priya became a big fan of Anshu after watching her wrestle at the Nidani Sports School. Given her late grandfather Pirthi Singh's wish and Anshu's impact on her life, Priya finally decided to take up wrestling in 2017.
And in five years, she proved her mettle by winning two Cadet World Championships gold and a silver in the Asian Championships in the cadets and junior categories respectively apart from bagging medals at the national level. The latest one came in form of silver which she clinched in the U-20 Worlds which concluded recently in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Obviously, the 17-year-old is happy with her progress but the only regret is the absence of her grandfather, who couldn't watch her finish on top of the podium in an international event. "He passed away in 2020 due to a heart attack. I won medals in age group categories at the national level when he was alive but my first international medal came in 2021 when I bagged 73kg gold at the Cadet World Championships in Budapest," Priya, who returned to the country on Monday along with the U-20 team, told this daily.
Priya's father, Jaibhagwan and her uncle Rakesh were also wrestlers. However, it was her grandfather who initiated her into wrestling and Anshu's rise gave wings to that dream. "I used to watch wrestlers going for their usual drills at the Nidani Sports School. Then I saw Anshu and how she trains at the school. The way she used to go about her wrestling made me decide to pursue the sport professionally."
While India is known to produce good wrestlers in lower weight categories, it's difficult to find heavyweight grapplers, who have managed to leave an impact at the international level. Priya, however, is destined to change that script, believes coach Randhir Malik, who accompanied the team to Bulgaria.
"These youngsters including Priya, Antim Panghal and Priyanshi are the future of the country as far as women wrestling is concerned. We had won international medals in heavyweight categories in the past but that dominance was missing somehow. However, I strongly believe wrestlers like Priya (76kg) will change it now," said the coach.
Priya pinned Kazakh wrestler Alina Yertostik in the qualification bout at the U-20 Worlds before overcoming Melisa Saritac from Turkey 6-4 in the quarterfinals. She then had a tough bout against Veronika Nyikos of Hungary in the semifinals where she won 6-5. Priya held on her own in the final against Ayano Moro of Japan but went down 3-1 to lose out on the gold.
"I am learning a lot by regularly competing in such international events. The U-20 Worlds final against the Japanese wrestler was tough but it taught me a lot of things. There are a few flaws that need to be ironed out and I will work on them with my coach," signed off Priya.