Salute the World Cup champions

Last week was the 50th anniversary of India's triumph in the World Cup hockey in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The national team defeated Pakistan to lift the coveted trophy, the only occasion when India emerged as the champions in the competition.

The victory had unleashed celebrations across the country, and both the President and Prime Minister congratulated the team. The team members went on a tour around the country and organisations vied with each other to host and dine them. I remember going to the Town Hall in Ernakulam to meet the members of the champion side led by Ajitpal Singh. It was one of the rare wins achieved by India in an international tournament during the 1970s.

It may surprise many youngsters that India was the uncrowned kings of hockey till the early 1960s. India had won the Olympic gold medals from 1928 and it was only in 1960 that we lost the pole position, suffering a defeat at the hands of Pakistan in the final. But, the team exacted sweet revenge four years later by winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympiad. But by the end of the seventh decade of the 20th century, it became evident that new challengers had emerged from Europe, Australia, and New Zealand, who took the game seriously.

The inaugural World Cup, held in Barcelona, Spain, acknowledged the growing popularity of this sport in Europe. Pakistan won this championship, defeating Spain, while India finished third. In the second edition, held at Amsterdam, India finished second, going down to the hosts Netherlands in a match that went to a penalty shootout. Hence, hopes were subdued when the national side left for Malaysia.

India were placed in Pool B along with West Germany, Australia, Argentina, England and Ghana. We started with a 2-1 win over England and followed it with a draw (1-1) against the strong Aussie side. But the euphoria from a massive win over minnows Ghana by a 7-0 margin was erased when the side went down tamely against Argentina (1-2). This meant India had to defeat West Germany in the last match to qualify for the knockout phase. In that crunch game, India played brilliantly to etch a 3-1 victory and thus entered the last four stage.

The semifinals against Malaysia turned out to be a cliffhanger. Malaysia shot into the lead in the 23rd minute, but India equalised at the beginning of the second half. However, the home side surged ahead with a goal in the 42nd minute, and they held on to it till the final minutes of the match. With only a few minutes remaining for the final hooter, when Malaysia appeared to have one foot in the final, India won a penalty corner. Aslam Sher Khan, who took the penalty corner, executed a perfect hit, sending the ball to the roof of the net. During extra time, India seized the initiative and scored again, this time through Harcharan Singh, to move to the final.

Pakistan were undoubtedly the favourites in the title match. Though India had defeated them in the semifinals at Amsterdam in 1973, the side boasted of a galaxy of superstars and had won the gold medal at the Asian Games in 1974 comfortably. They went ahead in the 17th minute through a goal from Zahid. India equalised in the 44th minute when Surjit Singh converted a penalty corner.

With the game tantalisingly posed, Ashok Kumar weaved his magic and dribbled past a host of Pakistan defenders to score the winning goal for India in the 51st minute. Despite their best efforts, Pakistan could not score again, and the Indian tricolour fluttered high when the final whistle was blown.

India was led in this championship by Ajitpal Singh, by far the best centre half in the world at that point. The side employed a 2-3-5 approach with two full backs, three half backs and five forwards. Micheal Kindo and Surjit Singh were the defenders, with Aslam Sher Khan coming in as a substitute when required. The half line had, besides Ajitpal Singh, Varinder Singh and Mohinder Singh. The forwards were Govinda, who was the centre forward, Victor Philips and Harcharan Singh in the left and right wings and Ashok Kumar and Shivaji Pawar playing as insides. The reliable Ashok Dewan at the goal was an asset as he seldom made a mistake. The whole team gelled as a unit.

The victory raised high hopes that India could win the gold medal during the Montreal Olympics, which was held a year later, in 1976. It was decided earlier that Astroturf would be used in Montreal, as opposed to natural grass, which was the surface on which the games used to be played till then. Indian team for Montreal spent a couple of months in Europe to get accustomed to playing on Astroturf before the Olympics began. But, after starting their campaign with a facile win over Argentina, the side stumbled badly, losing to the Netherlands and Australia in consecutive matches. Though the side recovered well to win the remaining games, they could not qualify for the semifinals and had to return home without a medal. This was the first time since 1928 that India did not figure on the podium in this sport in the Olympics.

With the benefit of hindsight, we can say that the 1975 win was the proverbial last flame of a lamp that was on the verge of running out of oil. Indian hockey went into a downward spiral after this loss. The gold medal at the Moscow Olympics was on account of a boycott by major hockey-playing nations. India has not won the World Cup after 1975 nor reached the last four stage of this championship even once since then. It is only in recent years that the nation has managed to win a bronze medal in the Olympics. 

Many reasons have been cited for the downfall of Indian hockey in the international circuit. The game became faster with the advent of Astroturf. Players need more physical strength and stamina to do well on this surface. Thus, Indian players, who were trained on grounds having conventional grass, where the focus was more on dribbling skills, were at a distinct disadvantage while playing on this surface. Indians could not adjust from a slow dribbling style to a faster-paced “hit and run” model.

Another factor was the decline in popularity of this sport within the country due to successive defeats after 1975. The increase in the following for cricket, which overtook hockey as the most popular sport after the win in the 1983 World Cup, led to more youngsters seeking a career in this sport than hockey. The glamour and riches associated with cricket lured youngsters away from hockey, even in those parts of the country that were considered to be the bastions of this game.

On this occasion, when the nation recalls the pride and joy that the side brought to the nation by winning the World Cup five decades ago, let us congratulate the players who made this possible. While wishing them good health and cheer, let us also hope that India gets its act together and repeats the success of 1975 by becoming world champions again in the near future.