Indian cricket thus stole a march over hockey in both the hearts and minds of its countrymen and women and would never look back again. Nothing could have prepared them though for what followed–a deluge of goals by Pakistan resulting in a 7-1 drubbing which took the wind out of the sails of what had been a brilliantly organised event. And they did, beating Pakistan 2-1 in a pulsating match, the winning goal fittingly scored by Ashok Kumar, son of the immortal Dhyan Chand.
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Doordarshan finally went colour and launched the national hook-up in time for IX Asian Games in New Delhi in 1982, the biggest multi-sports event to be held in India with 33 participating nations including the hosts. In 1951 Delhi had hosted the inaugural Asian Games with just 11 countries taking part. The icing on the cake was the 4-0 drubbing of Great Britain in the 1948 London Olympics final just one year after India had thrown off the colonial yoke to become an independent nation. But then the defeat at the hands of Pakistan in the 1960 Rome final was like a national calamity, the first time India had failed to win gold.
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- Cricket on the other hand had to wait 20 years and 25 Tests for its first victory and did not win a Test match or series abroad till New Zealand in 1968.
- Although he couldn’t bag an Olympic medal, Milkha Singh established himself as one of the greatest Asian athletes with dominating performances at multiple Asian Games and Commonwealth Games.
- His contributions to Indian hockey are celebrated, and he remains a respected figure in the sport.
- The Chinese still arrive at Birmingham with an extra spring in the step than anywhere else on the calendar.
- The sports included — sprints, marathons, jumps and throws — are diverse.
- His contributions to tennis, both in India and globally, are widely recognized and celebrated.
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Tokyo Olympics
The shot zoomed in, hit the post on the inside and ricocheted out. Umpire Vijayanathan — the same official as the ’73 final — gave it immediately, waving away the angry protests of the Pakistan players. Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand have two semifinals in this tournament, and had a decent World Tour Finals. The pairing is capable of upsetting some big names, but will need to pull off those wins – Chinese Taipei always tricky in Round 1, Koreans Kim-Kong next and Chinese power-pairing Liu-Tan in quarters. Women’s Doubles though, is on the up-tick with 3 Indian pairings making it to the main draw for the first time.
Singh’s record would have won India a gold in the men’s marathon in 1996. For Ashok, though, it was one man’s presence that counted the most. “My father never said a single word in praise. He only patted my back three or four times… That was the reward I got from my father.” Dodging a defender, Ashok played a one-two off Philips on the right, and from the centre of the D, he leathered it at goal.
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Lawn tennis
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A new generation of hockey players lead by Balbir Singh Sr. continued India’s dominance. She had a knee injury in the 2016 Olympics, effectively ending her medal ambitions, and your domain name she lost in the quarter-finals of the 2021 Olympics despite being a strong medal candidate. Despite these failures, Vinesh Phogat inspires and motivates new athletes with perseverance and hard work.