10 greatest moments in Indian hockey history

India vs Pakistan in the 2003 Asia Cup

Once upon a time, hockey was practically the only sport that all Indians were crazy about. This is a time before cricket became a national obsession and took hockey’s place in the country.

Hockey’s popularity was widespread and the Indians excelled at this game. The government portal of India has named hockey under the national sport of the country. With the Wizard, Dhyan Chand, leading the sensational Indian team in the early 20th century, the sport became even more popular.

In the early years, the Indian team dominated the sport but the graph has gone down in the recent years. Nevertheless, we have won many accolades and trophies over the years.

Here we take a trip down the memory lane and select a list of ten greatest moments in Indian hockey history.

#10 Asia Cup wins in 2003, 2004

The Indian men’s field hockey team had previously reached the finals of the Asia Cup four times but had failed to get the better of age-old rivals Pakistan thrice while losing out to South Korea once in 1993.

In 2003, they finally achieved their goal when the crushed Pakistan 4-2 in the finals to lift the sixth Asia Cup. In the classic encounter in Kuala Lumpur, India went on the offensive from the start. However, the match was level at 2-2 at half-time. Eventually, India overcame Pakistan’s challenge to lift the title for the first time.

2004 saw the women’s team replicate their male counterparts’ performance as they won the Asia Cup by beating Japan in the finals in New Delhi.

The men's team thrashed South Korea 7-2 in the 2007 finals when they defended the title successfully.