5 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Mar 12, 2026 11:43 PM IST
Bhiwani in Haryana is synonymous with boxing, but in the current Indian women’s team, a youngster from the region is starting to make her mark in hockey. Ishika, 18, is one of the newcomers in head coach Sjoerd Marijne’s squad at the FIH Hockey World Cup Qualifiers in Hyderabad and scored on her senior debut against Uruguay on Sunday. On his return to the helm, the Dutchman has a serious rebuilding job ahead of him as India’s fortunes have plunged internationally over the past year, and the 18-year-old forward is one of the youngsters he has turned to.
Ishika’s journey began when her family was in Shahabad, that famous Haryana hockey nursery that has produced many a superstar for the Indian team. “My father used to coach there. When I was young, I went with my father and watched seniors play. After that, my father got transferred to Bhiwani, and I started taking it seriously when I was in Class VI,” Ishika tells The Indian Express. “There weren’t many girls playing hockey in Bhiwani who I could train with. So, I used to play along with boys and my elder brother. My father has been my coach since the start of my journey till I made it to the camps.”
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Her father, Virender Kumar, 60, is a hockey tragic; he still plays too, representing Haryana at the 2025 Masters Cup in Chennai – Hockey India’s tournament for players aged above 40. “At 60, I might have been the oldest player there,” he says, adding that he played at the Inter University level during his younger days. But it wasn’t a case of wanting to live his dreams through his daughter; that part just came naturally. As Ishika puts it, “I think hockey was just built into my genes, I think. I never wanted to play any other game.”
“She just started playing hockey for entertainment. She used to finish her homework and come with me to the stadium, and I gave her a small stick and assigned a few tasks. Then very soon, her ball control started getting really good. She started getting serious, would practice long hours on Sundays too, and that way, I too never took a day off. Her drive to play came from within her. I knew then she would become a good player,” Virender says.
Ishika with her father and coach Virender Kumar. Credit: Special Arrangement.
Virender, who is now retired from his job as a government-appointed hockey coach, continues to train kids in Bhiwani but concedes that it is no Shahbad or Sonepat, where Haryana’s most well-known names have come from. “Bhiwani has had a boxing center for many years. But it is not exactly known for hockey. There is an astroturf for sure (Bhim Stadium), but the kids who come from the village are not regular. If you get 30-40 kids of the same age group, then they can have the same level of training. We just have a couple of 8-year-olds and 12-year-olds, five 19-year-olds, ten 20-year-olds. We don’t get the right group,” he says.
Harry Potter fan
Ishika is a self-confessed Potterhead, spends her free time reading books – The Alchemist is her favourite, but not Harry Potter, as she is a fan of just the movies – and is a huge fan of Cristiano Ronaldo. “I don’t watch a lot of Bollywood movies. I used to watch a lot of animated movies, but Harry Potter is my favourite. I have all parts watched multiple times,” she says. “Every time I go home, it’s a good feeling to sit down with my mother and brother, rewatching those movies. While in school, it was just about studies and hockey, but since coming to the camps, I picked up the reading habit, too.”
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On early evidence, Ishika has that spark, as illustrated by her first goal – receiving a first-touch pass from another teenager, Sakshi Rana and sweeping it past a crowded defence. It was a fitting moment as Ishika and Sakshi share a special bond off the field too, both hailing from Haryana and playing together in the Junior World Cup together last year. In fact, on the day the squad for the World Cup qualifiers was announced, Ishika was a bundle of nerves and couldn’t bring herself to look at the list . It was Sakshi who conveyed the message to her.
“Sakshi and I have a good bonding, have known each other a long time. We always talk about taking up spaces on the pitch, pre-scan and be ready for the next move. So, she saw me, and as soon as she hit the one-touch pass, my on-the-floor slap shot was good. To score my first goal for India on debut, with my long-time friend supplying the pass, was a very special moment for me,” Ishika says.
