Gwalior, 4 February : Sharda Nand Tiwari, a resident of Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, and a member of the Indian Under-21 hockey team, has immense experience playing at the international level. He has played in prestigious global events like Junior World Cup and Johor Cup. Sharda, who reached Gwalior to play Khelo India Youth Games for the fifth time, described Khelo India as a platform that gives new players a feel like the Olympics, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games.
Sharda, who represented the country in the Junior World Cup held in Bhubaneswar last year, has come to participate in the Khelo India Youth Games for the fifth time. He brings quality and experience to this grassroots-level event. There are many players like Sharda, who have reached Madhya Pradesh for Khelo India for the fifth time and the presence of such players not only adds to the beauty of the event, but new players get to learn a lot from their presence.
Sharda, who is serving the Indian team as a defender, said, “It is a very good platform. This is especially a good thing for beginners as it gives them the feel of international events. They get to know how events like the Olympics, Asian Games and Commonwealth Games are conducted. Also, new players get to know what kind of talents are there in the country and how to mingle with them.
Sharda said that being a senior player, he takes care that new players (even from other states) do not face any kind of problem and also helps those players who come for tips. Sharda, a product of Sai Sports Hostel, Lucknow, said, “Players from most of the states know each other. We mix well with each other. This is also a speciality of Khelo India. Here players from different states come to one place and meet each other and share their experiences. We are serious in the field but after the field, we are all friends.
There are many good hockey players in UP. UP has always given good international players to the national team. The UP team has always performed well in Khelo India. In 2018, the UP team did not get many places. She was defeated in the semi-finals. She also reached the semi-finals for the second time in Pune. Then this team won the gold medal in Guwahati. After this, the UP team reached the finals in Panchkula but had to settle for silver.
