The Hockey World Cup

Thanks to all the advertising by Hero Honda, there has been a surge in hockey watchers in India, both inside and outside the stadium. For a change, people could be seen talking about hockey. But after 3 consecutive defeats for the Indian team, the enthusiasm plunged. People had build very high expectations from the team after the hosts defeated Pakistan in their first game.

Considering the fact that team India is ranked 10th in the hockey, I really found their performance good. Their defense against Australia and Spain was sluggish which costed them huge defeats. But except for that, the team performed reasonably well. For a team which has historically depended on dribbling than on pace, the team adapted well to the newer ways. And I personally feel that Indian fans should rejoice the performance of the team. The team is learning and improving quickly. The coach Jose Brasa has done some really good work but it would take some time before standards of team can match those of nations like Holland, Germany and Australia. After all years of neglect and mis-management of the sport can't be undone overnight.

After all these months of cricket, it was quite a refreshing change to watch a new sport. I do occasionally watch lawn tennis and sometimes football, but after watching the recent matches, I liked hockey better. After all its our sport though shadowed by the influence of cricket in subcontinent. But I believe that if promoted well, hockey has the potential to grab attention of the people. The game is fast and with 70 minutes playing time and 90 minutes running time, it can fit well into the prime time zone. Lets hope that even after the world cup, the game continues to retain the attention that it has lately got.