Asian Games 2018: India Favourites to win both gold medals in Field Hockey
Present State of Indian Hockey: An Overview
"A glorious past, a lacklustre present and an uncertain future". This has been the story of Indian Men's Hockey Team for the last few decades.
However, the scenario is changing slowly but surely. Although India is still not the best in the world, they are definitely on track to regain their lost glory. They are consistently putting up winning performances against the best teams such as Australia, Germany, Belgium, Argentina, and Netherlands. As a result of their consistent performances, the Indian Men's Team is presently ranked Number 5 in the World.
This positive development of Indian Men's team is not, the only good news, for all the hockey fans of the country. The Women's team's performance in the recently concluded World Cup and their rise from a mediocre team to a top 10 team in the world is something the country should be proud of.
Indian Men's Team's Prospect at the 2018 Asian Games:
At the upcoming Asian Games in Jakarta, the Men's hockey team of India will be an overwhelming favourite to win the tournament.
The other contenders to win the tournament will be the traditional Asian hockey powerhouses like Pakistan (WR:13), South Korea(WR:14) and Malaysia (WR:12).
Grouped with South Korea, Japan, Sri Lanka and Hongkong, India should comfortably make it to the semis, where they have the possibility of meeting their arch-rivals Pakistan or Malaysia.
Although India's performance has been very good against these Asian countries in the recent past, they should not take them lightly.
With a spot in the Tokyo Olympics up for grabs, along with the Asian Games Gold Medal, all the other contenders will definitely make it tough for India.
However if the Indian Team plays according to their potential, they should win the gold medal.
Indian Women's Team's Prospect at the 2018 Asian Games:
Unlike the men's team, the Women's hockey team of India (WR:9), is definitely not a clear favourite to win the tournament, although they are the highest ranked team in the competition.
With the likes of defending champions South Korea (WR:10), China (WR:11) & Japan (WR:14) in the fray, the Indian women have to be at their very best to win the gold.
The difference between these four teams is very less.
However, after a quarterfinal finish in the World Championships, India will be high on confidence, going into the tournament. And with the likes of skill-full players like Rani and Vandana in their ranks, India can definitely consider themselves a strong title contender.
Concluding Remarks:
If both the men's and women's team can ultimately win the gold medals for India, then it will be a historic moment for Indian Hockey.
Schedule for Field Hockey at the 2018 Asian Games:
Men's Event: 20th August to 1st September
Women's Event: 19th August to 31st August