As the World Cup Hockey tournament got underway in The Hague, India opened its campaign with a disappointing 3-2 loss to Belgium in its opening match on Saturday. India conceded a goal 15 seconds before the end of play.
India has set itself a modest target for the World cup: it wants to finish in the top eight of the 12 teams in the competition.
It wasn't always like this. For much of the last century, India dominated the sport, winning six Olympic gold medals in a row from 1928 to 1956.
One of its proudest moments came In 1936, as it defeated the German team 8-1 in the finals of the Berlin Olympic Games to puncture Hitler's delusions about Aryan supremacy. That said, the Germans were a tad better than the other teams India had faced until then: they scored the only goal India had let through in the entire competition.
India dominated the tournament, beating Japan, Hungary and the US convincingly in the pool matches and walloping the French 10-0 in the semis.
Three of India's eight goals in the final – played on August 15 – were scored by the captain, Dhyan Chand, who is thought to have been among the finest players the sport has ever produced. Here's what hockey looked like six decades ago, when dribbling was king (and the commentary rather more restrained).
India has set itself a modest target for the World cup: it wants to finish in the top eight of the 12 teams in the competition.
It wasn't always like this. For much of the last century, India dominated the sport, winning six Olympic gold medals in a row from 1928 to 1956.
One of its proudest moments came In 1936, as it defeated the German team 8-1 in the finals of the Berlin Olympic Games to puncture Hitler's delusions about Aryan supremacy. That said, the Germans were a tad better than the other teams India had faced until then: they scored the only goal India had let through in the entire competition.
India dominated the tournament, beating Japan, Hungary and the US convincingly in the pool matches and walloping the French 10-0 in the semis.
Three of India's eight goals in the final – played on August 15 – were scored by the captain, Dhyan Chand, who is thought to have been among the finest players the sport has ever produced. Here's what hockey looked like six decades ago, when dribbling was king (and the commentary rather more restrained).
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