Usually a quite residential area,Moga was abuzz with activity on Thursday morning. The epicentre of this noise was Ward Number 2,the Bhullar household. While the curious and the invited snaked their way in,the entire locality soon found out that the youngest daughter in that family,Harmanpreet Bhullar,had been named the captain of the Indian womens cricket team. It was a moment of pride for not just Moga,but all of Punjab. For after all,Harmanpreet,deputy to Mithali Raj for over a year,had become the first cricket captain from the state. The 24-year old will now wear the captains armband for India in the home series against Bangladesh starting next month. Despite the Indian side not doing too well in the womens World Cup earlier this year,Harmanpreet was Indias stand-out performer,with 159 runs,an average of 53 and a top score of 107. It was enough to fastrack her to the leaders spot even as seniors such as Raj,Jhulan Goswami and Reema Malthotra were shown the door due to their collective poor performances. Harmanpreet,however,will not be complaining. For a girl who had to fight against the system at every stage of her life to become a cricketer in the first place,becoming the captain of the national team was just reward. For the all-rounder and her family members,this was the ultimate retribution. Harmanpreets father,Harmander Bhullar,could not have been happier. Harman has proved that players from small town can also shine at the international level. For us it is the most special day. When a girl achieves such a feat,it gives a complete new meaning to the accomplishment, the father said. Working as a clerk in Moga district court with meagre wages,Harmander never sacrificed on his daughters dreams. Despite the financial constraints,Harmanpreet was enrolled for cricket coaching with coach Yadvinder Sodhi. The coach,of course,is delighted about his pupils achievements. This is just the beginning, says Sodhi. She is well grounded and knows what is required from her. Her parents have worked hard,so that their daughter could reach such a level. They should be proud today. She has evolved as an extremely competitive cricketer. If there are two or three more players like her,we would be the best team in the world.
