Following in Aman Sehrawat’s path, U23 World Champion Chirag Chikkara sets sights on bigger targets

Before he set out from India to compete at the U-23 Wrestling World Championships in Tirana, Albania, Chirag Chikkara got a succinct bit of advice from his coach Kuldeep Sehrawat.

“Coach  sahab said India has a reputation in the men’s 57kg wrestling category. (Olympic silver medallist) Ravi Dahiya has won a silver at the U-23 World Championships (in 2018). (Olympic bronze medallist) Aman Sehrawat has won gold at the U-23 Worlds (in 2022). So I had to maintain that reputation,” Chirag tells Sportstar.

He did just that. On Sunday, Chirag beat Abdymalik Karachov of Kyrgyzstan 4-3 in the final of the men’s 57kg category to become just the second Indian men’s wrestler and only the third overall (Olympian Reetika Hooda won the women’s 76kg category last year) to win gold at the U-23 World Championships.

The match against Karachov was his closest of the competition — he was trailing 0-2 and 2-3 and separate points in the match — but Chirag also pulled off wins over strong challengers from Russia (beating Iunis Ibatirov 12-2 in the quarters) and Japan (overcoming Gakuto Ozawa 6-1 in the opening round)

At just 18 years old (turning 19 in a couple of months), Chirag is also the youngest of the three Indians to climb to the top of the podium in the tournament. By winning gold at the U-23 Worlds, he will also stake a claim in one of India’s marquee wrestling classes.

“57kg is the most competitive men’s freestyle weight class in India. We have Aman Sehrawat who is the Olympic bronze medallist but we also have some very strong competitors in India. I think with this win in what is his first senior-level competition, Chirag will now get the confidence that he belongs in this group,” says Kuldeep.

Chirag might now be seen as one of India’s top wrestling prospects, but it was only by chance that he took to the sport. Growing up in Juan, a village near Haryana’s Sonipat city, Chirag wasn’t particularly interested in wrestling.

“Wrestling is popular in our village. We even have an  akhara (pit) here which has produced some seven-eight international level wrestlers. But in our family no one ever took part. My father was a school teacher and even though I was interested in the sport, I never picked it up because I had to learn a trade. 

“Chota mota kaam toh karna tha (I had to do some small work),” says Chirag’s father Dinesh Chhikkara, who currently works as an electrician at the Sonipat Sugar Mill. “I thought Chirag would either study or learn a trade like myself.”

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Unwilling start

However, a young Chirag didn’t have any great interest in sports. “He was someone who just sat at home all day. He was actually a little overweight as a child,” says Dinesh of his son who now competes at the lightest weight category in international freestyle wrestling.

It was with the intention of helping his son get fit that Dinesh finally sent Chirag to the village’s  akhara when he was 12-years-old . “At that time he also didn’t have much interest in wrestling. But the longer he stayed at the akhara, the more he liked it. He became very dedicated to training there,” says Dinesh.

In two years, Chirag earned a reputation as one of India’s top sub-junior prospects, even securing a spot at the U-15 Asian Championships in Iran. He would also make the Indian team for the 2021 Cadet World Championships in Budapest where he would go on to win a bronze medal.

His family, initially tepid towards the idea of raising a sportsperson, also backed him. “It’s not easy to manage the expenses of a wrestler. There are a lot of costs in diet. I barely make enough money to run my household and I wouldn’t have had the money to pay for Chirag’s nutrition. But my father used to take out money from his pension and he would support Chirag that way,” says Dinesh.

As he made his way through the juniors, Chirag outgrew the  akhara from his youth and began training under Kuldeep at the Raipur wrestling academy in Sonepat. “He was already very skilled but he didn’t have many training partners in his village. So it made sense for him to come here,” explains Kuldeep of his academy where many top wrestlers including 2023 U-23 World Championship gold medallist Reetika train.

The move to a bigger academy and better sparring partners was essential for Chirag. As he moved through the ranks, he found himself competing no longer with juniors but now vying for a spot in a senior weight division that features what is easily India’s deepest talent pool in wrestling.

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While he won a few medals at the national level, there were also obstacles. Over the last three years, he’s been injured three times – twice in his knees and once in his ribs. While he’s never had to undergo surgery, Chirag’s been forced to miss multiple tournaments.

He had to watch as other players including from his academy (his roommate at the Raipur Sports Academy Shubham wrestled at the U-23 Worlds last year) make their own mark.

“He actually doesn’t have the kind of results you would expect from someone of his quality at the national level. Last year, he only won a silver in the U-23 nationals where everyone expected him to win a gold. This year he won the Haryana State championships but then he lost early in the senior nationals in Jaipur and didn’t even win a medal,” says Kuldeep.

“During that time it was important to give him the confidence that he actually was a good wrestler, I had to keep motivating him  ki accha kar sakte ho, (you can do well).”

Indeed, many vouch for his talent. “Chirag is different from most of the other Indian wrestlers. He’s a defensive counter-attacking wrestler. Most Indian wrestlers will concede a lot of points at the start of a match but then use their stamina as the match goes on. Chirag has a lot of stamina but he also doesn’t give away many points,” says Kuldeep.

He’s also seen as someone who is a lot more mature than his age would suggest. “He’s very calm in matches. He was trailing in the final but there was never any panic in him,” says Virender Kumar, former chief coach at India’s top wrestling school Chhatrasal Akhara , who was coach of the Indian team at Tirana.

Stepping stone

Chirag’s coaches believe the gold medal he’s won in Albania will prove to be a stepping stone for bigger accomplishments. “This is the first senior international competition for him. This medal will also help him get jobs and sponsors. He will also come under the TOPS development scheme (the government’s program to support Olympic athletes),” says Kuldeep.

Chirag though is thinking of bigger targets than just jobs and sponsorships. “I have won a U-23 gold medal but there is so much competition in India. It will not be easy to become the best wrestler in India but I have got a lot of self-belief with this medal.

“There are so many good senior wrestlers like (Olympic bronze medallist) Aman Sehrawat who are much more experienced than me. I hope I will be able to make the same name for myself as he has done,” he says.