The 19th Asian Games Squad

Asia has 48 countries and these countries, including India, are going to have a big sports-themed party called the Asian Games. The 19th edition of the Games will be hosted by China for the third time in Hangzhou from September 23 to October 8. Hangzhou is set to welcome more than 10,000 athletes who will compete in more than 40 exciting sports! We spoke to some Indian athletes on the guest list. Read on to find out who they are, and how they got there

- Vagisha Bhatia and Melissa Fernandes

Devika Vaidya-Cricket Against All Odds

It's 2003, and the Men's Cricket World Cup final is playing on television. 6-year-old Devika Vaidya and her family are glued to the television screen, rooting for India to win. At the end of the gripping match, the Australian team is declared as the winner. The young Devika did not understand the game's rules or how the winner was decided. But looking at the Australian players celebrating and her family's upset faces, she understood what losing and winning felt like, and she was amazed at how cricket could bring out these different emotions. "It was that day that I decided that I wanted to play cricket," says the now 26-year-old cricket all-rounder from Pune.

A Challenging Innings

Devika's parents then set out to find a sports club for her. But neither Devika nor her parents knew how challenging it was to find a sports club that allowed a girl to play cricket -uncommon even in 2003! After being denied by a lot of coaches and cricket clubs, they finally found a club that allowed her to play, but on one condition-she should not be seen by the club management, otherwise, there would be trouble. Her parents then came up with the idea of hiding her long hair in her cap.

But she was the only girl on a pitch full of boys! To her surprise, Devika got along well with the boys, discussing the latest cricket news or matches. We all were equally interested in the sport and that's what mattered."

At age 8, Devika got a chance to play in the Under-16 Maharashtra tournament for women. At age 11, Devika did not know whether she wanted to play or quit, as she saw no improvement in her game.

To Quit or Not to Quit?