Xtra Time Web Desk: The upcoming Tokyo Olympics can prove to be India’s best chance for winning multiple medals. As many as 126 athletes will be representing the country in 18 disciplines. With five days to go for the biggest sporting spectacle, all eyes will be on the athletes who will carry the hopes of the nation. Xtra Time has been analyzing the medal prospects of the country at Tokyo Summer Games in various disciplines. Let us focus on the Indian men’s hockey team.
The current men’s hockey team led by Manpreet Singh and coached by Graham Reid, have put up some inspiring performances in recent times. The recent results have showcased that this Indian team does not bow down in front of even the toughest of oppositions, and there appears to be an attitude in this team filled with young and experienced players. This change in attitude and self belief make them a strong contender of a podium finish at the Tokyo Games. Since the Rio Olympics, where the team finished at 8th position, the performance graph has been on a rise.
Indian squad:
Goalkeeper: PR Sreejesh
Defenders: Harmanpreet Singh, Rupinder Pal Singh, Surender Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Birendra Lakra
Midfielders: Hardik Singh, Manpreet Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Nilakanta Sharma, Sumit
Forwards: Shamsher Singh, Dilpreet Singh, Gurjant Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Mandeep Singh
Past Performances in Olympics: India has the best record in hockey at the Olympics with a record eight gold medals. India won in 1928, 1932, 1936, 1948, 1952, 1956, 1964, 1980 Olympics. India also has the best overall performance in Olympic history with 77 victories out of the 126 matches played. But post 1980 hockey in the country saw a decline with the team failing to compete with stronger European opponents. The best performance in recent times was when the team failed to make it to the semi finals at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Indian hockey reached a low when the men’s team failed to qualify for 2008 Beijing Olympics. The team finished 12th at London Olympics while in the last Olympics at Rio the men’s tend finished at disappointing 8th.place.
The Tokyo bound Indian hockey squad has a good blend of experience and youth. The presence of veteran goalkeeper PR Sreejesh in the team is perhaps one of the biggest strengths of this team. The team will rely on the experienced Rupinder Pal Singh and Harmanpreet Singh when it comes to penalty corners and drag flicking. Birendra Lakra and Amit Rohidas are also in form and their pairing is the reason why India has improved over the years in defending set-pieces. However the only concern for the side will be the inexperienced forward line comprising of Shamsher Singh, Dilpreet Singh and Gurjant Singh.
Currently ranked No 4 in the world, the Indian hockey team had some great victories in last year and half, with wins over World champions Belgium, and the 2018 World Cup runners-up Netherlands. India also picked a win over Australia in March 2020. The team travelled to Europe for matches against Germany and Great Britain in February-March. Despite no practice games, India returned unbeaten, with two wins and two draws on the tour. Manpreet and his boys also defeated Argentina twice in the FIH Pro League games (one on penalty shootouts) in April this year. The only worrying factor for Graham Reid’s side will be lack of match practice in last four months due to the second wave of COVID-19 in the country. Going by the recent form guide, the country can expect a podium finish from the men’s hockey team after 41 years at Tokyo.