Paris Olympics hockey: India face Germany in semis; looking back at India's past glory

India will take on Germany on Tuesday (August 6) in the semi-finals of the men’s hockey tournament at the Paris Olympics. They go into the match with a disadvantage – with one player less. India will play with only 15 players, instead of the full squad of 16.

Defender Amit Rohidas, who received a red card during the quarterfinal match against Great Britain on Sunday (August 4), has been handed a one-match ban. A red card automatically triggers a ban. Hockey India has challenged the decision, but the chances of the appeal being upheld before the semis are quite slim.

The last time India featured in the finals was 44 years ago – in 1980 at the Moscow Olympics, when India won the gold medal. That victory, however, would not carry as much weight as India’s other hockey gold medals at the Olympics because the Moscow Olympics was boycotted by about 60 countries after Russia's invasion of Afghanistan. 

India’s glory years at the Olympics – 1928 to 1956

The Indian men’s hockey team has won a total of 8 Olympic gold medals – 6 of them in a row from 1928 to 1956. The remaining two gold medals were won in Tokyo 1964 and Moscow 1980.

The years 1928 to 1956 were a glorious period for Indian hockey when the country lorded it over other nations.

Amsterdam 1928

The Olympic Games in Amsterdam in 1928 witnessed the emergence of an Indian hockey wizard by the name of Dhyan Chand. The legend began his Olympic career by scoring 14 goals at Amsterdam to end the event as the top scorer of the tournament. India scored a total of 29 goals, with the other teams not managing to score a single goal against it across 5 matches. Dhyan Chand scored a hat-trick in the final against the home team, the Netherlands, helping India secure a 3-0 victory and winning India’s first-ever gold medal at the Olympics.

Los Angeles 1932

The Indian hockey team at the Los Angeles Olympics in 1932, unfortunately, saw divisions within the team, between the “Indians” and the “Anglo-Indians”.

Fortunately, this did not affect the team’s performance on the field. In a tournament that had only 3 teams competing – hosts USA, India, and Japan – India started the tournament with a big bang, destroying the American team 24-1. Dhyan Chand and his brother Roop Singh dominated the scoring, with Roop shooting an unbelievable 10 goals and Dhyan scoring 8.

Japan did not stand a chance in the final, with India thrashing them 11-1 to win India’s second consecutive gold medal.

Berlin 1936

India continued to dominate the other international hockey teams at the Olympic Games held in Berlin in 1936, just before World War II.

The 31-year-old Dhyan Chand captained the team in his last international tournament, and left his stamp on it with another virtuoso performance.

During the league stages of the tournament and the semi-final, India scored 30 goals without conceding a single goal against Hungary, USA, Japan, and France. The two brothers, Dhyan and Roop, again displayed their shooting prowess, scoring a majority of the goals.

In the final against Germany, Dhyan Chand treated the fans to yet another spell-binding performance, scoring a hat-trick, his second in Olympic finals, as India defeated hosts Germany 8-1 to take home its third Olympic gold medal.

Dhyan Chand retired from the game with three Olympic gold medals. There are stories told that Hitler, the chancellor of Germany during the Olympic Games, seeing Dhyan Chand’s wizardry with the hockey stick, offered him a post in the German army, which the Indian refused.

London 1948

The Second World War led to the cancellation of the 1940 and 1944 Olympics. The gap of 12 years, however, did nothing to stop the Indian team from winning its fourth gold medal at the Olympics, and India’s first one after independence.

A new Indian hockey star emerged during the London Games – Balbir Singh Sr. He played a major role in India’s victories over Argentina 9-1, Austria 8-0, and over Spain 2-0 in the semi-finals.

The final saw India and Great Britain playing each other for the first time after India gained her independence a year earlier. India handed her former colonisers a comprehensive 4-0 defeat at the Wembley Stadium to become champions again – gold medal number 4.

Helsinki 1952

Balbir Singh Sr continued his fine run at the Olympics for India, scoring 9 goals at the Helsinki Games in 1952, including a hat-trick against Great Britain in the semi-finals.

India outclassed the Netherlands in the final 6-1, with Balbir Singh Sr scoring five of those goals, ensuring India’s fifth gold medal at the Olympics.

Melbourne 1956

The Melbourne Olympics in 1956 was especially memorable for India because it won its second hat-trick of hockey gold medals at the Olympics and its first hat-trick after gaining independence – London, Helsinki, and Melbourne.

India had it easy during the league matches against Singapore, Afghanistan, and the USA. They however found it difficult against Germany in the semi-final and managed to win by a solitary goal.

The final was between India and Pakistan, with Balbir Singh Sr, the captain, playing despite a fracture in his right hand. India prevailed over Pakistan 1-0, and took home a historic sixth Olympic gold medal.

Tokyo 1964

Pakistan ended India’s 28-year dominance at the Olympics, winning its first Olympic gold medal in the Rome Olympics in 1960, defeating India 1-0 in the final.

The two Asian nations met again in the final of the Tokyo Olympics in 1964, the third successive Olympic final between the two countries. India’s goalkeeper Shankar Laxman put on a sterling show and made sure India won its 7^th Olympic gold medal.

When Indian hockey faltered

The period after the Tokyo Games saw India’s performance at the Olympics falling, as the country managed to win only bronze medals at the Mexico 1968 and Munich 1972.

The Montreal Games in 1976 saw India’s worst performance at the Olympics, ending in the seventh place.

Moscow 1980

The Moscow Olympics in 1980 saw a depleted field with many Western nations boycotting the Games in protest against Russia’s invasion of Afghanistan. The boycott was led by the USA, and was joined by about 60 other countries.

The star of India’s gold medal win at Moscow was Mohammad Shahid, who set up several goals across matches and scored one himself in the final against Spain. India beat Spain 4-3 in the final, to win its 8^th and last men’s hockey gold medal at the Olympics.

Tokyo 2020

The Tokyo Summer Olympics 2020, held in July-August 2021 because of the Covid pandemic, saw India coming back to winning ways after a long drought at the Olympics.

India won its first hockey medal after four decades at the Olympics, defeating Germany in the third-place playoff to take home the bronze medal.

What led to India’s decline

The introduction of artificial turf in field hockey made the game much faster, and called for better stamina and speed. The European players were physically better suited for the fast-paced nature of the game, leading to the decline of India and other Asian countries. India and Pakistan traditionally relied more on stickwork and individual brilliance, while the modern game required more teamwork and better athleticism.

It has taken India several years to change the nature of their game to be able to compete with the likes of Germany, Australia, the Netherlands, Britain, Argentina, Belgium, Spain, and the rest. The induction of foreign coaches and the laying of more artificial turfs across the country has played a part in India slowly regaining its confidence at the international level.

Bronze medal at Tokyo – shot in the arm

The bronze medal-winning performance at the Tokyo Olympic Games 2020 was a shot in the arm for India, and the new-found confidence was on display in India’s first win against Australia in the Olympics after five decades, beating the Aussies 3-2 at the Paris Olympics on Friday (August 2).

The quarterfinal victory against Great Britain on Sunday (August 4) was another sign of India’s resilience and adaptability under coach Craig Fulton as India played the major part of the match with only 10 players. They managed to draw the match 1-1 and took the match to a shoot-out, where Sreejesh, the goalkeeper, made a great save and Raj Kumar Pal beat the British goalkeeper to take India to the semi-finals against Germany.

The whole country will watch with bated breath and anticipation when India play Germany in the semi-finals on Tuesday (August 6). The nation of a billion-plus will be storming the heavens with their prayers for its team to reach the final of the Paris Olympics.