Field hockey in India is played by the men's national team and the women's national team at the international level. Historically, both the teams are amongst the most successful Indian sports teams.
In July 2018, Indian state Odisha wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to declare field hockey as the national sport of India.[1] The state government of Odisha has been supporting India's national field hockey team from February 2018 till next five years.[2] The 2018 Men's Hockey World Cup was held in the Odisha capital Bhubaneswar between 28 November and 16 December and culminated with Belgium as World Champions defeating Netherlands in the finals. Field hockey was believed to be India's national sport but this was debunked by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, which confirmed that it had not declared any sport or game as the national sport.[3]
History
Men's Field Hockey
Golden years (1928–1959)
India participated at the Olympics for the first time in 1928. In the group stage, India beat Austria 6–0, Belgium 9–0 and Switzerland 5–0 without conceding a single goal. They defeated Netherlands 3–0 in the finals under the captaincy of Jaipal Singh Munda.[4] India then went on to successfully defend their title at the 1932 Olympics with a 11–1 win over Japan and 24–1 win over United States, in that match Dhyan Chand scored 8 goals and Roop Singh scored 10 goals, This is still the largest margin of victory ever in the Olympic games even after all these years.[5] India went on to win their third straight title at the 1936 Olympics, this time captained by legendary player Dhyan Chand himself. India stormed through the group stage by winning against Japan 9–0, Hungary 4–0 and United States 7–0. In the semi-finals they defeated France 10–0. The team went on to face Germany in the final. The match was won by India 8–1 and it still remains the biggest winning margin in an Olympic final.[5] The Indian hockey team that won three successive Olympic titles is often regarded as one of the greatest ever to play the sport.[6]
India vs Berlin XI in 1936.
The World War II caused the cancellation of 1940 and 1944 Olympics, which ended the era of a team that dominated world hockey.[7]
At the 1948 Olympics India was placed in group A and won all the three games, an 8–0 win over Austria, Argentina 9–1 and Spain 2–0. In the final India went on to face Great Britain, it was the first time India faced them. The skilled British team had already won the gold medal in 1908 and 1920, so this match was billed as a "Battle of Champions" and eventually India won the match 4–0.[8] The result was a sweet one for India, which gained independence from Britain just a year before. This win is often regarded as the greatest ever moment of Indian field hockey and also all of Indian sports.[9]
India went on to win two further gold medals in 1952 and 1956, preserving its record as the most successful and dominant team at that time in the Olympics. In 1952 Olympics quarter-finals India won against Austria 4–0, Great Britain 3–1 in semi-final and defeated Netherlands 6–1 in the final.[10] The match is famous for the five-goal magical performance of Balbir Singh Sr.,which is an Olympic record that still stands today. At the 1956 Olympics India defeated Afghanistan 14–0, United States 16–0 and Singapore 6–0 in group stage. India defeated Germany 1–0 in semi-final. In the final India faced Pakistan and won the match 1–0, which was the beginning of the biggest rivalry in field hockey.[11] India and Pakistan again met each other in 1958 Asian Games and this time the match ended in a 0–0 draw. India also defeated Japan 8–0, South Korea 2–1 and Malaysia 6–0. But Pakistan claimed gold medal in the Asian Games by better average. It was the first time India finished runners-up in an international competition.[12]
Last years of dominance (1960–1980)
At the 1960 Olympics India started its campaign by winning against Denmark 10–0, and Netherlands 4–1, New Zealand 3–0. India defeated Australia and Great Britain in quarter-finals and semi-finals respectively. In the final it was the beginning of a new era, for the first time India lost a match at the Olympics, a 0–1 loss to Pakistan in the final which ended India's streak of six successive gold medals and 30 matches unbeaten run.[13] Two years later India went on to win another silver medal at the 1962 Asian Games. India returned strongly at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics by registering wins against Hong Kong, Belgium, Netherlands, Malaysia and Canada and drawing with Spain and Germany. In the Semi-finals India defeated Australia 3–1, and they won against Pakistan in the final to take their seventh gold medal at the games and also went on to capture their first gold medal in 1966 Asian Games by defeating Pakistan again in the final.[14]
Indian team celebrating their 1–0 win over Pakistan in the 1973 World Cup semi-finals.
At the 1968 Mexico Olympics, India started with a loss against New Zealand but won all of their remaining 6 matches against West Germany, Japan, Spain, Mexico, East Germany and Belgium but India went to a new low, for the first time as they were defeated in the semi-final by Australia, but they successfully claimed the bronze medal by beating West Germany.[15] At the 1972 Olympics also the results were same as India started brightly by defeating Great Britain, Australia, Kenya, New Zealand and Mexico but drew with Netherlands and Poland. They were defeated in the semi-finals by Pakistan. In the third-place match India defeated the Netherlands to claim bronze medal.[16]
India won the bronze medal at the 1971 World Cup by virtue of a win over Kenya in the third-place playoffs.[17] At the 1973 World Cup India defeated Pakistan in semi-finals, but lost to Netherlands in the final in penalty shoot-out after the match ended in a 2–2 draw.[18] But at the 1975 World Cup India defeated Malaysia in the semi-final before beating arch-rivals Pakistan in the final to claim their first title.[19] In the 1976 Olympics astro-turf hockey pitch was introduced, India struggled to maintain their dominance like they did on grass fields and for the first time ever returned home empty handed. The
1980 Olympics was held in Moscow, India started their campaign with an 18–0 win over Tanzania followed by a 2–2 draw with both Poland and Spain respectively. Later followed by resounding wins over Cuba with a margin of 13–0 and Soviet Union by the scoreline of 4–2. India later won the gold medal for a record eighth time by defeating Spain in the final by the score of 4–3.[20]
Decline (1981–1997)
After the 1980 Olympics success India's performance declined and the following decades resulted in a lot of ups and downs for the national team. As the team failed to win any medal in the World Cups or Olympics, but continued to be a top team in Asia and went on to win several medals in continental competitions.[21] The 1982 World Cup was hosted by India and they finished at 5th position.[22] The team lost to Pakistan in both 1982 Asian Games final and the inaugural Asia Cup final held in Karachi.[23] India ended the decade by winning bronze medals at the 1986 Asian Games and 1982 Champions Trophy and silver medals at the 1985 Asia Cup and 1989 Asia Cup. Their only gold medal success in a big tournament in the decade came at the 1985 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.[24]
India also went on to win 1991 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup and reached finals of 1994 Asia Cup but lost to South Korea in the final. The team then went on to win the 1995 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup.[25]
India started the new millennium by winning the inaugural Hockey Champions Challenge by defeating South Africa in the final. In 2003 India won their first ever Asia Cup title by defeating Pakistan in the final.[29] The same year India also clinched the first and only Afro-Asian Games title by defeating Pakistan again in the final.[30] For the First time in their history the team did not win a medal at the Asian Games as they finished fifth at the 2006 Asian Games, but India defended their title successfully in the Asia Cup by winning the 2007 Asia Cup. In the final the team conveniently beat South Korea 7–2.[31] India failed to qualify for 2008 Beijing Games for the first time.[32]
The next Asia Cup tournament in 2009 proved to be disastrous as the team finished fifth and failed to get any medal. But the team regained momentum after winning the 2009 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup and also became the joint winners in the 2010 edition. In the 2010 World Cup, which was hosted in India, and the team finished on 8th position. In the 2010 Commonwealth Games which was again hosted by India, the national team reached the final where they were defeated 0–8 by Australia, the biggest defeat India ever suffered.[33] India became the first ever champions of the Asian Champions Trophy after they beat Pakistan in the final of the 2011 edition.[34] In 2012 the team finished last at the Olympics as they lost all their matches, it was disappointing given the fact that they are the most successful team ever at the Olympics.[35][36] India also finished as runners-up at the 2012 Asian Champions Trophy.[37]
The 2018 Asian Games proved little disappointing as India was the defending champions as well as the favorites to win but was surprised by Malaysia in semi-final. They later won bronze medal by defeating Pakistan 2–1.[46] The team returned strongly by winning 2018 Asian Champions Trophy and collecting a gold medal at the 2018–19 Men's Hockey Series. India played as hosts in the 2018 Hockey World Cup and reached the quarter-finals but lost to Netherlands.[47]
Indian team won bronze in 2020 Tokyo Olympics after defeating Germany 5–4. This was a historic win as the Indian Hockey team won a medal in Olympics after a gap of 41 years.[48][49]
In 2023 India made a successful run at the Asian Champions Trophy and the Asian Games both of which India won undefeated.[50]
This event served as the inspiration for the 2007 Bollywood film about women's field hockey, Chak De! India starring Shah Rukh Khan (after screenwriter Jaideep Sahni read a short article about it).[62] Sahni began to model the character of Kabir Khan on hockey coach Maharaj Krishan Kaushik.[63] After hearing the storyline, Kaushik suggested that Sahni meet hockey player Mir Ranjan Negi (who faced accusations of throwing the match against Pakistan during the 1982 Asian Games).[64][65][66] Sahni has stated that he was unaware of Negi's tribulations while writing the script and that the resemblance with Negi's life was entirely coincidental.[67] Negi affirmed this point stating that he didn't "want to hog the limelight. This movie is not a documentary of Mir Ranjan Negi's life. It is in fact the story of a team that becomes a winning lot from a bunch of hopeless girls".[68] In response to the fact that the media equated Kabir Khan with Negi, Sahni said that "Our script was written a year and a half back. It is very unfortunate that something, which is about women athletes, has just started becoming about Negi."[63]
Tokyo Olympics and resurgence
India at the 2020 Summer Olympics for the first time ever,[69] reached the semi-final in the Women's Hockey Olympic event but failed to bag any medal after they lost to Argentina[70] in the semi-final and then to Great Britain[71] in the bronze medal match. Following their performance at the Olympics, the team went to win bronze medals at the 2022 Asia Cup and the Commonwealth Games and a third-place finish in the 2021–22 Pro League. In 2022 India won the first ever FIH Women's Nations Cup. However, they failed to qualify for the Paris Olympics losing to Japan in the bronze medal match at the Olympic Qualifier in Ranchi on 19 January 2024.[72][73]
The IHF was formed on 7 November 1925 in Gwalior. India was the first non-European team to be a part of the FIH. As a member of the International Hockey Federation, it represented India in all international matches under the former leadership of KPS Gill & the secretary of the federation, K. Jyothikumaran. The women's team was directed by the Indian Women's Hockey Federation.
Prem Nath Sahni, an Indian Administrative Service officer with interest in hockey since his college days, took over stewardship of the Indian Hockey Federation in 1973, at a time when conflicts broke out between its Northern and Southern wings.[74] The Indian Hockey scene was marked by excellence until 1973 when Ashwani Kumar, the then president, stepped down.[75] India lost its supremacy in the game on the world stage ever since.[76] P N Sahni remained the President of the Haryana Olympic Association from 1969 to 1978 [77]
New committee (IOA) (2008)
The Indian Olympic Association appointed a new five-member national selection committee. This panel will work in conjunction with the International Hockey Federation in managing field hockey in India.[78]
The panel was headed by Aslam Sher Khan, a former MP and former hockey captain and includes Ashok Kumar, Ajit Pal Singh, Zafar Iqbal and Dhanraj Pillay. Aslam Sher Khan has now been replaced by Ajit Pal Singh as the chairman of the national selection committee. Aslam Sher Khan was highly displeased by this decision, though he remained as a selector.[79][80]
On 30 April 2008, in an interview with India Today, Khan indicated the impact of the 2007 film about the National Women's Hockey Team, Chak De! India, on his future strategy by stating that he wants "to create a 'Chak De' effect" within Indian hockey.[81]
Hockey India, with the assistance of the Sports Authority of India and Department of Sports, trains players at sub-junior, junior and senior level. The governing body is responsible for training the coaches, as well as educating and equipping technical officials and umpires.
The India men's national field hockey team is governed by the Hockey India (HI) and is a member of the Asian Hockey Federation (AHF). Since 1926, the BCCI has been affiliated with FIH, the international governing body for world field hockey. In 2011, the Hockey India became the members of the both FIH and AHF.
Performance
The following list includes the performance of all of India's national teams at major competitions.
The Indian Hockey Team is the national men's hockey team of India. It was the first non-European team to be a part of the International Hockey Federation. In 1928, the team won its first Olympic gold medal. From 1928 to 1956, was the golden period for the Indian Hockey team. The Indian men's team remained unbeaten in the Olympics, gaining six gold medals in a row. The Indian team has won a total of eight gold, one silver and three bronze medals in Olympics.[85][86][87]
In 1928, the team won its first Olympic gold medal and until 1960, the Indian men's team remained unbeaten in the Olympics, winning six gold medals in a row. The team had a 30–0 winning streak during this time, from their first game in 1928 until the 1960 gold medal final which they lost. India also won the World Cup in 1975. India also has the best overall performance in Olympic history with 83 victories out of the 134 matches played. They have also scored more goals in the Olympics than any other team. They are also the only team ever to win the Olympics without conceding a single goal, having done so in 1928 and 1956.[93]
These National Championships are divided into two divisions, to ensure that participating teams are competing in a fair, equal environment, and against teams with similar level of skills.
Below is the list of National Championships that Hockey India conducts every season:
Hockey India Senior Men National Championship
Hockey India Senior Women National Championship
Hockey India Junior Men National Championship
Hockey India Junior Women National Championship
Hockey India Sub-Junior Men National Championship
Hockey India Sub-Junior Women National Championship
Hockey India 5-a-side National Championship (Women)
Hockey India 5-a-side National Championship (Men)
Hockey India 5-a-side National Championship (Mixed)
