India last won the prestigious Azlan Shah trophy in 1995,and if one needs to put the win into perspective,consider this: Pargat Singh,who led the team to the top of podium then,is currently the sports director of Punjab; coach Harendra Singh was still a player with Mahindra & Mahindra (they dont have a hockey team anymore); current team manager Dhanraj Pillay was a feared name in world hockey back then; Dilip Tirkey,the worlds most-capped player,was an unknown entity; and captain Sandeep Singh,who proudly lifted the trophy,was a nine-year-old kid,just tall enough to measure himself against the hockey stick. It may be too early to say Indian hockey is on an upswing,but there is no denying that the recent spate of impressive performances would do well to prove that there still is hope for the game. We have achieved nothing at all so far,except make everyone realise once again that,despite being out of action for almost six months,India are no also-rans. Six months did not wipe out all those years of hockey, said coach Harendra Singh from Ipoh. And Jagbir Singh,director of planning in the IOA ad-hoc committee for hockey,said this was the ideal preparation for the Asia Cup but,more importantly,this win will only make the team more confident. We have to understand that we are not really 10th in the world. Finishing last in the Olympics also ensures a jump of at least 3-4 points in the world rankings. So,take away the points structure and,going purely by performance,we are still among the top 7-8 teams, Jagbir said. Consistently successful teams affirm that winning is a habit. The Indian hockey team had been losing for far too long to understand the winning feeling. For the past few months,though,they have tasted success repeatedly whether in Argentina,New Zealand or at home (Punjab Gold Cup,where they finished runners-up) and,with almost the same set of players,it seems this squad is finally realising what winning means. Stinging losses But even when it seemed that the Indian hockey team had become used to losing,player after player was regularly expressing his anguish at not doing better,at India not winning,at the Europeans talking about them as if they didnt exist. It was worse since the Pakistan team,despite being at par,somehow always managed to remain in the reckoning. Being out of the Olympics snapped something in the players. And when several talented players,neglected and ignored for long because of reasons other than sport made their comeback last year,they found common ground with the rest of the squad to prove. After winning the Asia Cup in 2007,Tushar Khandker said: Dil se bolun,to aaj pehli baar lag raha hai ki shayad zindagi mein hockey khel ke galti nahin ki (for the first time I feel playing hockey was not a wrong decision). Since then,Tushar has become indispensable for the team. Hopefully,this Azlan Shah win will ensure more players develop a taste for the winning feeling.
