50 years in the past, when India gained its 1st, and to date solely, hockey World Cup crown | Hockey Information

Picture: Hockey India video seize

The early Seventies was arduous on hockey lovers in India. In an period when something lower than an Olympic hockey gold was thought-about a failure, solely bronze medals had come India’s approach after Tokyo 1964. Even in World Cups, a high podium spot was elusive.
In Barcelona 1971, when the primary World Cup was hosted, India completed third whereas Pakistan lifted the trophy. Amsterdam 1973 was heartbreak central. India led 2-0 towards Netherlands within the last earlier than agonisingly happening on penalty strokes. India missed a penalty stroke throughout ‘sudden demise.’ A conversion would have resulted right away triumph. However it was to not be.
Nonetheless, 1975 brimmed with expectation.
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The Emergency was nonetheless just a few months away. In captain Ajit Pal Singh, Ashok Kumar, Govinda, V Phillips, Surjit Singh and Michael Kindo, India had a first-rate unit. However had been they higher than Pakistan who had Akhtar Rasool, Samiullah, Islauddin and Saleem Sherwani of their ranks? That was the tantalising query.

India began nicely, however not completely. Pakistan did. Each topped their teams. However in contrast to the neighbours, India suffered a loss. Argentina, the hockey equal to New Zealand in cricket, upset India 2-1. However the semifinal turned out to be an even bigger check.
Backed by a vociferous residence crowd, Malaysia performed sterling hockey and led India 2-1. Penalty corners had been plentiful however common taker, Surjit Singh, was having an off-day. In desperation, the dependable Kindo was substituted for a rookie 21-year-old defender from Bhopal.
With simply 4 minutes left for the hooter, India earned a penalty nook. What occurred subsequent is a second engraved in each hockey lover’s reminiscence. Aslam Sher Khan kissed the tabeez (amulet) given to him by his mom; his strike sending the match into extra-time. Harcharan Singh’s objective earned India a spot within the last once more.
Within the different semis, Pakistan appeared unstoppable routing Germany 5-1.
These had been radio days. Everybody skilled sports activities by the lens of the spoken phrase and creativeness. Jasdev Singh, the doyen of Hindi sports activities commentary, was behind the mike. A couple of senior college students introduced transistor radios to highschool. A few of them lower lessons to take heed to the commentary. The noise they made instructed us India gained the World Cup. Fittingly, hockey wizard Dhyanchand’s son, Ashok Kumar, scored the decider in a 2-1 win.
In my thoughts’s archive, I all the time pictured Kumar dodging previous the Pakistan defence and scoring the match-winner. Reality is, as I noticed after watching the ultimate on YouTube some years in the past, it got here off a goalmouth melee.
Watching the match performed on grass in Kuala Lumpur, I additionally realized how dramatically hockey has modified because of the introduction of astro-turf within the 1976 Montreal Olympic. I vividly keep in mind the celebrations. Crackers had been burst, nevertheless it wasn’t something like these days.
When hockey was all about nationwide delight and emotional funding
No one had that type of cash then. But a way of pure pleasure was evident in every single place: faculties, paan retailers, streets, bus stops. It was the one level of dialog. With Indo-Pak cricket in hiatus, hockey was the sport the place nationwide delight and collective feelings had been invested. On that ‘Ides of March’ each hockey participant additionally turned a family identify that sports activities lovers of a sure classic can nonetheless reel off by reminiscence.
Within the weeks that adopted, in style magazines similar to ‘The Illustrated Weekly of India’ and ‘Dharmyug’ carried cowl tales of the triumph. Gamers acquired awards in numerous kinds. As an illustration, the Punjab authorities gave them Rs 5,000 every. The UP authorities gave every member a Vijay scooter. Quantities and awards that let you know one thing concerning the instances.
Sadly, India by no means stood on the hockey World Cup podium thereafter. The 1980 Moscow Olympics gold too got here towards a vastly truncated area. Caught napping by astro-turf, it will be many years earlier than the nation would grow to be a drive in hockey once more. Now hope floats with two consecutive Olympic bronze medals gained in Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024. However the nation awaits the golden glow.