Gurbax Singh hopeful Indian men's hockey team will end 50-year World Cup wait after women's cricket triumph

New Delhi, Nov 7 (PTI) Inspired by the Indian women's cricket team's historic World Cup win under Harmanpreet Kaur, hockey legend Gurbax Singh believes it is now time for Harmanpreet Singh's men’s hockey side to script their own history by ending India's five-decade-long World Cup drought.

The eight-time Olympic champion Indian men's hockey team has so far won the World Cup only once, in Kuala Lumpur in 1975. Host India finished joint ninth in the last World Cup held in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela in 2023.

"Indian women's team's World Cup will greatly benefit women's cricket in the country. Hopefully, we will end our 50 years wait by winning the Hockey World Cup next year," the 88-year-old Gurbax told PTI Bhasha in an exclusive interview on the occasion of Indian Hockey's centenary celebration at MDC national stadium.

Gurbax was part of Indian hockey teams that won gold at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and a bronze at the 1968 Mexico Games.

The senior men's World Cup will be held in Belgium and the Netherlands in July-August next year. India qualified for the tournament by winning the Asia Cup.

Gurbux feels that the World Cup began during the era of AstroTurf and it might be the reason that India couldn't replicate its Olympic performance.

"The World Cup came after the introduction of AstroTurf. Our performance in the Olympics also declined after the introduction of the turf, so that may have been the reason. But looking at our current performance, I'm confident that a medal in the World Cup is not far off," said the legend.

He said that the current Indian team is capable of lifting the trophy but some changes will have to be made.

"Most of the players in this team have been playing for more than 10 years. Transition has to be better which will strengthen our claim. My advice is to keep playing well and maintain this momentum, but we need to bring in some junior players as well," he said.

A key member of the gold medal-winning team at the 1966 Asian Games Gurbux said that Indian hockey is on the right track but needs to move upwards.

"At this level, you have to be among the top five teams. The semi-finals should be the first goal in the Olympics or World Cup, after which any medal can come. I always aimed for the semi-finals, said the Octagenarian.

Describing the 100-year journey of Indian hockey as memorable, he said that after the introduction of artificial turf, Indian hockey virtually disappeared for nearly 40 years, but it made a comeback with bronze medals at the Tokyo and Paris Olympics.

"Now we have to do better. I hope this comeback won't just be limited to bronze, but will turn into gold. We won eight gold medals at the Olympics, which is no small feat." Four years before the 1964 Tokyo Olympics, India lost its title to Pakistan in Rome. India, captained by Charanjit Singh, defeated Pakistan in the final played in Tokyo under a tense atmosphere.

His face lit up while recalling old memories .

"We had lost in 1960, and in 1964, we had to win at all costs. We had nothing to lose in the final. The Pakistanis were more nervous, but we played calmly and gave our all. Final was a tense match. In the last five minutes, goalkeeper Shankar Laxman saved two penalty corners from Munir Dar to secure a memorable victory." "Then, in 1966, we won the Asian Games gold medal for the first time. This journey has been golden, and I feel proud." Regarding the changes in hockey, he said, "You can't compare hockey during Dhyan Chand's era, or hockey in 1948, 1952, or 1956, to hockey today.There's a huge difference between hockey played on grass and Astroturf. The demands are different, but the Indian team has adapted well to them." PTI MJ AT AT