Silver Medal In Hand, Diksha Dagar, Pranavi Urs Bring Asian Games Glory Home To Women's Indian Open

Diksha Dagar, the highest-ranked Indian on the Ladies European Tour, tees off this week with a bigger audience than Indian women's golf has ever had. The Asian Games medals have barely settled at home, and two of the players who won them are back on Indian soil for the Hero Women's Indian Open. Diksha Dagar, part of the silver-medal-winning team, and Pranavi, who took the individual gold with her, are in the field for a tournament with a USD 500,000 prize purse and a place on the Ladies European Tour schedule.

For Dagar, the homecoming carries real emotion. "It feels amazing to be home after winning the silver medal," she said. The Asian Games come around only once every four years, and she treated the week accordingly. "I played as if it was my last day, giving everything, putting a lot of effort, because I thought that this is my chance. I don't want to lose this opportunity," she said.

Rivals who made each other better

The team silver and Pranavi's individual gold came out of a long friendship between the two players, built on years of travelling together and competing against each other. Dagar does not hide the rivalry. "It's kind of a competition between us," she said, and she credits that edge for how far both have gone. 

"We have been competing because of that process, we are able to achieve high."

The relationship, she says, is also about pushing each other. "Yes, of course, we do give a push because we know each other very well, because we have been growing up together."

A season at the top of the Indian ranks

Dagar arrives in form. She is 18th on the Ladies European Tour Order of Merit, the best position among the Indians on tour, and she has been in the hunt for the top 10 week after week. Five Indian women have been regulars on the tour this year, and Dagar, who already has three wins on the circuit, has led the group.

This season has been about narrow margins. "This year, I have been very close to win, even miss by one shot," she said. Her best result came at the Scottish Open. "Even at Scottish Open, I finished 16th, which is one of my best achievements."

She sees consistency as her strength and her hunger as the reason for it. "I really wanted to win the tournament. I have been pushing myself that because it's my dream that I wanted to be there."

Her immediate goal is clear, and she kept the answer short. "Win the tournament." Beyond that sits the bigger ambition: "Obtain a membership on the LPGA."

Golf, and a challenge faced early

Dagar's story goes beyond results. She began her career with a hearing impairment and is a two-time Deaflympics gold medallist. 

Asked whether golf had given her a level playing field, she was honest about what she faced. "Yes. Like, there has been a definitely challenge for me, like a hearing problem."

She places the credit with her family. "It's all thanks to my parents and the blessing," she said. "They have been kind of like umbrella to me, like holding my hand and guiding me to the goal."

What Pranavi's gold means

For Indian women's golf, the larger story is what Pranavi's gold medal has done for the sport's profile. Dagar is clear about golf's place in the country. "Golf is not very much popular in India as much the cricket is," she said. Pranavi's result has started to shift that. "Pranavi has achieved, like, winning the gold medal and it has been a proud moment for us and for the nation as well."

She believes the win has reached beyond the golf community. "And now, like, so many billions of the people know what golf is."

The Women's Indian Open gives that new audience a chance to see the players in action at home. Dagar, for her part, is hopeful about the sport's direction. "It's good to see that the golf is growing and hopefully it will reach to the same height as much cricket is."

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