The resurgence of Indian hockey

… The giants have arisen, again!

Once upon a time, not so long ago, India used to rule the hockey fields. The Indian wizard Dhyan Chand so mesmerised Adolf Hitler in 1936 Berlin Games that the Fuhrer wanted to test if he really used some kind of glue to his hockey stick.

Germany comes to mind as India, the once glorious stars in the firmament of hockey started fading in the seventies. A rare glimpse of gold in the 1980 Olympics and then the once masters of the game were gone. Europe was on the ascendant for long, and back in Asia, Korea and Japan were making their marks. Pakistan held up the flag of the subcontinent for some time, eventually they started fading as well. Speaking of Germany, India’s ascendancy has begun in the Olympics again, today with a 5–4 winner against the Germans in Tokyo Olympics.

A new era in Indian hockey has begun. This time it is different; Indian hockey stars stand shoulder to shoulder with the world’s best where the best hockey teams converged on Tokyo and it was an all out match for India. India lost to Australians and the Belgians, (one of whom will eventually win the Gold and the other the Silver medal) but other than that, their performance has been stellar.

Much to be hoped for from now on.

Go India!