Hockey India, with much fanfare and buzz announced the team of Rio Olympics in a ceremony which included the likes of FIH president Leandro Negre, new Sports Minister Vijay Goel, BCCI president Anurag Thakur and BJP president Amit Shah along with legends of Indian hockey.
The team announcement ceremony reminded of one such same event which took place four years ago when Indian team left for London Olympics with same high hopes and fanfare. The team that played in London Olympics consisted of some big names like Sandeep Singh, Shivendra Singh, Tushar Khandkar and Ignace Tirkey. The team’s performance in the London Olympics was a disaster as they finished in last place after failing to win a single game in the tournament.
The repercussion of poor performance was such that Hockey India laid down the stick and axed most of the senior players which played in the tournament. Let us take a look at what happened to the players who were part of the Indian team which played the London Olympics post the tournament.
Goalkeepers
Bharat Chetri: Bharat Chetri who captained the side in London Olympics was among the senior players to be sacked by Hockey India after team’s poor performance in the tournament and hasn’t played a single game for India since then. He was part of Jaypee Punjab Warriors squad for first three seasons but played little in the presence of Netherlands goalkeeper Jaap Stockmann. He currently, plays for his employers Canara Bank.
PR Sreejesh: After the sacking of Bharat Chetri, PR Sreejesh became India’s first choice goalkeeper and in four years since then, there has been no other goalkeeper who has challenged him for his place. Sreejesh whose performance earned him the tag of ‘The Great Wall of India’ and a road named after him in his hometown. His strong performance and leadership in recently concluded Champions Trophy forced Hockey India to give the captaincy band to Sreejesh for the Rio Olympics.
Defenders
Sandeep Singh: India’s most lethal weapon for scoring goals before the London Olympics was also sacked as Hockey India decided to introduce the policy of ‘go young’. Since London Olympics, Sandeep has not featured for India. Despite staying out of the squad for a long time, he has not lost his goalscoring form as he is currently top scorer of Hockey India League with 35 goals in 4 seasons. With Indian team call still eluding him, Sandeep currently plays for Havant hockey club in UK
VR Raghunath: Was easily the worst players for India in London Olympics making many mistakes which led to opposition scoring goals against India but since the London Olympics, there has been a change in his fortunes as he became India’s most fearsome defender with his precision defense and goal scoring ability through penalty corners. He also served as vice-captain of the side in various tournaments and is expected to lead Indian defense in the upcoming Rio Olympics.
Ignace Tirkey: Despite his decent performance in the London Olympics, Ignace Tirkey was axed from the squad. He continued to play for Jaypee Punjab Warriors in Hockey India League for two seasons but post that he was dropped from the roster list. A member of Army XI hockey team, Ignace Tirkey also serves as vice president of Hockey Gangapur, one of the fastest growing hockey nurseries of India.
Midfielders
Sardar Singh:The Haryanvi lad was elevated to captain after the London Olympics where he became the heart and soul of the team. Was named in the list of nominees for FIH player of the year. Under him, the team went on to win the bronze medal in Hockey World League finals 2015 and Gold in Asian Games 2014 which helped India qualify for the Rio Olympics.
While his hockey stick was doing all the talking, his personal problems took a toll on him as he lost his captaincy to Sreejesh for the Rio Olympics.
Kothajit Singh:
Kothajit Singh has been a part of the Indian team and often an unsung hero of the Indian team. He was the part of the silver medal-winning side at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and he scored the most important goal for India in the finals of Asian Games where India beat Pakistan to qualify for the Rio Olympics. His consistency has been rewarded as he was selected to be a part of the Indian team which will participate in Rio Olympics.
Gurbaj Singh:
He was sacked after the London Olympics and his attitude was questioned but he made a successful comeback in the squad and formed a great partnership with forward SV Sunil on the right flank. His defensive duties also helped India during the tricky situations. Gurbaj was banned by Hockey India after questioning the quality of food – and despite getting his ban overturned, he finds himself out of the side for Rio Olympics.
Manpreet Singh:
Was one of India’s most impressive performer of Indian team during London Olympics, and he has kept on improving and adding new weapons to his armor every day. With the passage of time, Manpreet Singh has shown versatility on the field even chipping with drag flicks during penalty corners.
Touted as the future captain of Indian team, Manpreet has been handed the responsibility of marshaling the midfield in the upcoming Rio Olympics.
Birendra Lakra:
Looking at his defensive capabilities, Birendra Lakra was made to play as the defender and probably that was the best decision taken by Indian team management. Birendra’s performance as defender gave hope to many Indians who were worried about the leaky defense which earned the best player of the year during the inaugural Hockey India annual awards.
A knee injury cut his Hockey India League 2016 campaign short and despite making a comeback in Valencia 6 nation hockey tournament, he was not selected for Rio Olympics as he was not fully fit and the coach did not want to take chances with his health.
Forwards:
SV Sunil:
Another Indian player whose stock rose after London Olympics was SV Sunil. The astonishingly fast forward has shouldered the responsibility of keeping the forward line alive in the absence of experienced players like Shivendra Singh and Tushar Khandkar.
His constant terrorizing of opposition defense earned him the position of vice-captain of the Indian team for upcoming Rio Olympics.
Gurvinder Chandi:
Once compared to Gagan Ajit Singh, Gurvinder Chandi had an ordinary outing in London, scoring only one goal for India. Despite his mediocre performance in Olympics, Gurvinder Chandi was hot selling property of inaugural Hockey India League.
An ankle injury forced him to miss more than one and half year of hockey, he did make his comeback in Glasgow Commonwealth Games. He failed to find his form post return and was sidelined as he did not fit in the plans of new coach Oltmans but there are reports that he also one of the victims of hockey management politics.
Sarvanjit Singh:
A standby for the London Olympics, Sarvanjit has not played for Indian team since then and selectors haven’t even considered him for any tournament. He regularly features of his employers Punjab and Sind Bank, winning 52nd Nehru Cup after beating Punjab National Bank.
He was bought by Ranchi Rays for 2015-2016 but even there he failed to impress and got very little playing time
Shivendra Singh:
Shivendra Singh was another high profile player along with Sandeep Singh to be sacked from Indian team after disastrous London Olympics and has played just one tournament India’s jersey since then. He was selected to be a part of Jaypee Punjab Warriors squad in Hockey India League but a foot injury ended his campaign after scoring just 1 goal in 5 appearances.
He currently plays for his employers Air India and despite being 33 years of age, is better than most of India’s current forward line
Danish Mujtaba:
Forward turned midfielder Danish Mujtaba’s journey after London Olympics has been sort of a zig zag with him finding himself out of the side most often due to injuries. Despite being regularly injured Danish has made it to the squad for Rio Olympics based on his experience. His selection was some of a surprise for hockey fans as they did not expect him to be in the squad for the tournament.
Tushar Khandekar
Another big name to be sacked after London Olympics, Tushar Khandekar slowly moved from the role of a player to a coach. He started as a coach to junior Indian team but after the departure of Paul Van Ass, Tushar Khandkar was roped in as assistant coach of Indian men team and has earned a good name for himself in that role.
With him working under Roelant Oltmans, the team has won bronze in Hockey World League and Silver in recent Champions Trophy. Tushar tried also had a stint in Hockey India League but during season 1, but Oltmans convinced him to take the role of coach of junior Indian team before the start of season 2.
Dharamvir Singh:
After starting as a forward during London Olympics, Dharamvir Singh also became a midfielder and even playing as a full back couple of times. He worked well with SV Sunil and Gurbaj Singh in the right flank with is the consistent performance for the side but he missed the bus for Rio Olympics due to a back injury in the training camp before Champions Trophy. He is currently in the treatment room and is expected to start with light jogging after two weeks.
SK Uthappa:
Another player in the list of forwards turned midfielders, SK Uthappa went on to become Indian regular, formed a decent partnership in the left flank with Nikkin Thimmiah and Devinder Walmiki. A strong midfielder, he is one of the players who have good stick work and can take on the opposition defenders. He was awarded a place in the Indian team for Rio Olympics due to his consistent performance and a lot is expected from him in the tournament.
London Olympics turned out to be a boon for some players while the seniors had to relinquish their spot and allow the new players to take their position. With just 20 days to go for the Olympics, fans of India are hoping that unlike last time promises made to Indian hockey fans are kept by their beloved players and they finally end the wait of 36 years to win a medal in Olympics.
