Wimbledon winner Nagal does Jhajjar village proud

Ravinder Saini

Tribune News Service

Jaitpur (Jhajjar), July 13

Residents of this tiny hamlet, located 25 km away from district headquarters, are in an upbeat mood over the remarkable performance of their lad, Sumit Nagal (17), who clinched the Grand Slam Junior title at Wimbledon last evening.

They are not only congratulating each other for his success at the global level but are also planning to welcome him in style on his here. The panchayat will also felicitate Sumit for bringing laurels to the village as well as the nation.

Though Sumit resides in Nangloi (Delhi) where his father Suresh Nagal, an ex-serviceman, serves as a schoolteacher, they regularly visit the village to meet family members and villagers. Notably, Sumit is the sixth Indian to win a Grand Slam Junior title.

He has done the village proud by lifting the prestigious title. Fire crackers were arranged in advance since we were quite hopeful of Sumit’s victory in the final match. We sat glued to out TV sets to hear the good news last evening,” said Narender Nagal, a cousin of Sumit.

“The villagers started distributing sweets and bursting crackers as soon as Suresh informed us about his victory over phone,” he added.

Sumit was born in the village in 1999. His father shifted to Delhi from the village after his superannuation in 2003. Sumit got his initial training in Delhi and won several medals in state and national level tournaments, said Narender, an employee with Haryana Roadways.

Manju Devi, wife of Narender, said “Not only us but the entire village are enthused by Vicky’s (nick name of Sumit) achievement and are eagerly awaiting his arrival. People have been congratulating us since last evening,” she added.

Rajender, a village youth, said “Sumit has become an inspiration for the village youths who will be motivated by his success.”

Sarpanch Sudesh Devi, said Sumit had given them a reason to cheer and now it’s their turn to honour him for putting Jaitpur on the world map, she added.