Ritu Phogat sticks to own path despite slipping at the last hurdle

Almost three years ago in New Delhi, as an eager emcee dwelled hysterically on the rocking prizefighting scene in Singapore, the then least known girl of the first family of Indian wrestling sat frozen under the blinding arclights, her gaze fixed on the ground. Occasionally, Ritu Phogat would look at her father, Mahavir Phogat, in the front row. On those rare occasions of warmth, a soft smile would escape her. The discomfort was stark, the contrast ironical, the price of celebrity brutal.

Phogat's first real brush with fame was all about awkward poses and prepared answers. One quote stood out as a giant flagpole in the island of perfunctory correctness. "I want to be the world champion," she said, barely looking at the people she was speaking to.

It would be inaccurate to say that the statement bore a dramatic signature of her resolve. It didn't. It was as regular a line as one could come up with, but undeniably, on that afternoon, those were the only words she uttered with a degree of conviction.

Winning run

Over the course of two-and-a-half years, Phogat walked the talk, winning seven of the nine bouts in the Singapore-based ONE Championship. Three of the wins came via stoppage—either technical knockouts or submissions. Her first loss, to Bi Nguyen, had come through a split decision. Friday's loss to Stamp Fairtex was the only time Phogat had submitted the bout. Too bad it came at the last hurdle, in the final of the atomweight Grand Prix.

“I believe defeat doesn’t come to those who refuse to accept it. This may be a speed-breaker in my journey but definitely not the end,” she said after the loss.

With the defeat, her dream of becoming world champion has ended, for now. That must not take away anything from what Phogat's giant leap has achieved. Coming from the famed wrestling family, her sporting destiny seemed to be pre-ordained; to her credit, she went about realising it in earnest. Medals piled up, and soon she reached the podium at the Commonwealth Championships, Asian Championships and U-23 worlds.

However, further progress meant regular encounters with cousin Vinesh Phogat on the mat. Ritu decided to give MMA a shot, and as Vinesh set about chasing her Olympics goal, Ritu's MMA career blossomed. She went on a four-bout unbeaten run, made her name on the circuit with peerless grappling skills, aced the ground and pound routine, developed a mean overhead right, earned a vote of approval from Conor McGregor, and came achingly close to creating history.

Standing out

In fact, among Mahavir's four daughters, only Ritu, the youngest, has achieved significant success of late. Babita has traded the mat for full-time politics, while Geeta and Sangeeta made their comebacks after maternity and injury timeouts respectively at the wrestling nationals last month. All this while, Ritu has been pumping and pounding in Singapore. In a world far removed from the dusty village of Balali, she has slowly, but surely, stepped out of the looming shadow that defined her.

Doing it all by herself though has been a major challenge.

“It has been tough. I couldn't be home when my sister gave birth. I couldn't be home when one of my sisters got married. I have made a lot of sacrifices for this dream,” she said after beating Jenelyn Olsim, a result that booked her place in the finals.

In times when mental health concerns of elite athletes are finally being looked at with the empathy they deserve, Phogat's loneliness—in general and in the bubble—must not be ignored.

“I have never been away from my sisters for this long. Even at camps and competitions when I used to travel away from home, one of my sisters would be there. This is a new challenge,” she once said.

Keen learner

Thankfully for her, coach Siyar Bahadurzada has been at hand in Evolve Gym. “The best thing about Ritu is that she is very coachable. That's all a coach can ask for. She is very committed, and extremely strong, mentally and physically. Staying away from her family is a big deal for her, but she has handled herself really well,” he said.

Bahadurzada would know a thing or two about leaving home. Born to a family of businessmen in war-torn Afghanistan, Bahadurzada witnessed the worst of Soviet occupation. His childhood memories include wading through bloodied human remains on the streets of Kabul and the mortal knock of rockets exploding in the neighbourhood.

“I have seen a lot. As a child, I saw things that even trained soldiers need a psychologist for. Hardships cook you mentally,” he recalled.

Bahadurzada’s family migrated to the Netherlands when he was 15. Soon, he developed an interest in MMA, and followed it with Shooto, a Japanese martial arts form. Next, he became the middleweight world champion, and in the process, the first Afghan-born world beater in a combat sport.

"My 21-year career in MMA has taught me that the only key to success is to stay hungry. I see a lot of hunger in Ritu, and I am sure she will achieve great success,” he said before Friday's bout.

For that to happen though, Bahadurzada and his team need to diversify Phogat’s game. A gifted wrestler, Phogat's ground game is peerless, but it is her limited striking range that needs to be significantly revamped. Her bout against Fairtex was a classic case of Phogat’s one-dimensional game costing her. Phogat's only offensive strategy seemed going for a takedown, and when Fairtex resisted, the Indian didn't really have an answer.

Even when she finally managed to ground Fairtex, the latter's defence stood out. The 24-year-old Thai clinched Phogat in a mean leg lock and finished the bout with a clinical armbar.

In her previous interactions, Phogat had promised to shock her opponents with her striking game, but barring last year's bout against Cambodian Kun Khmer exponent Nou Srey Pov, she rarely displayed her standing moves.

“We know there are certain gaps in her game. But as a coach, I like to focus more on my trainees’ strengths, especially closer to bouts. I believe Ritu’s strengths are good enough to beat most fighters on the circuit. For me, every bout is like going to war. Once you move ahead, I burn the bridge behind, so the only way to move is forward. And Ritu will keep going forward,” Bahadurzada had said before the bout.

Phogat admitted to as much after the bout. “I will make sure that I emerge stronger and fiercer than ever before. The love and hope of my supporters has fired me up to come back stronger,” she said.

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