Indian Sports: A year that was 2024

2024 is ending and it is the perfect time to reflect on the rollercoaster journey of the Indian athletes across the spectrum of highs and lows.

From the roar of the triumphs to the anguish of loss, from the adrenaline of athletics to the finesse of badminton, it was an interesting year for Indian sports with a disappointing show at the Olympics being the highlight

The Bridge revisits what happened in different sports in the year 2024:

Boxing- A year of rather low and zero Olympic medals

(By Deepanshu Jain)

The major event for Indian boxers in 2024 was the Paris Olympics, where India earned six quotas despite having fewer available spots than the previous edition. Four female and two male players won Olympic quotas.

In addition, Sachin Siwach and Ankushita Boro also showcased brilliant boxing at the Olympic qualifiers. However, they narrowly missed out on a quota spot but proved the rise in the talent of Indian boxing.

Finally, when the time came, to convert this brilliant start of the year at the most prestigious competition, The Paris Olympics, Indian boxers couldn't live up to the expectations and faced a few early exits.

The biggest disappointment for the Indian fans was the second-round exit of the two-time world champion, Nikhat Zareen at the Olympics. She was a strong title contender but had a heartbreaking end at the Games.

On the other hand, Amit Panghal, playing in his second Olympics had a big chance of redemption but he also disappointed and exited in the first round. Losing to a Zambian boxer Patrick Chinyemba.

The only shining light for India this year was Nishant Dev's rise in 71 Kg, showcasing a solid performance throughout the year, including the Paris Olympics where he just marginally missed out on a medal.

Wrestling- Chaotic Year as Aman Sehrawat emerges as lone star

(By Deepanshu Jain)

Indian wrestlers had a good year 2024 despite all the off-field issues, related to federation and team selection, continuing their medal run at the Paris Olympics as well as the World Championships.

The biggest tournament of the year, the Paris Olympics, started with a boom for India when Vinesh Phogat upset the outright favorite Yui Susaki of Japan in the first round of the competition.

But, she suffered a major setback the very next day after failing to pass the weigh-in by 100 gms and lost out on her maiden Olympic medal, breaking the hearts of millions of Indian fans.

However, the Indian fans found a moment to cheer up in a couple of days as Aman Sehrawat won his maiden Olympic medal and confirmed that India would not leave Paris without a wrestling medal.

Indian wrestlers see more success in the coming days when Mansi Ahlawat wins the bronze medal at the World Championships and Chirag won India's only third-ever U23 World Championship title.

Chess- The Indians have finally arrived to dominate the world stage

(By Abhijit Nair)

2024 has simply been the year of Indian chess. Despite the seven Olympic and 29 Paralympic medals, if somebody looks back at the year a few years down the line, India's exploits in chess might overshadow the rest.

A total of five Indians competed at the Candidates and Women's Candidates combined, with Gukesh Dommaraju winning the former. He would then go on to be crowned the youngest World Champion, beating China's Ding Liren. Less than a fortnight later, Koneru Humpy clinched the Women's World Rapid Championship, at the age of 37.

Besides, Arjun Erigaisi shattered quite a few records and became only the second Indian to breach the 2800 rating barrier. The India No 1 rank, too, was taken off the hands of the great Viswanathan Anand with the youngsters coming to the fore.

Then there was the double triumph at the 2024 Chess Olympiad in Budapest. The likes of Vantika Agrawal, R Vaishali, and Divya Deshmukh too shone in the women's section, with Deshmukh even crowned the women's U20 World Champion.

"The children of Vishy Anand are on the loose," exclaimed Gary Kasparov, after Gukesh's Candidates won in April.

The rest of the season just proved him right.

Shooting- Manu redeems herself as the sport returns to Olympic medal-winning ways

(By Abhijit Nair)

An Olympic year without an Indian shooting discourse? That hasn't happened since two decades, when Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore claimed the country's first Olympic medal in the sport.

After two barren runs in the 2016 Rio and 2020 Tokyo Games, the onus was on the Indian shooters, coaches, and the National Rifle Association of India to deliver. And didn't they do it memorably?

Shooting ended up as India's most successful sport at the 2024 Paris Games with three medals. Manu Bhaker bounced back after the Tokyo debacle with two medals – one with Sarabjot Singh. Swapnil Kusale added the other.

There were heartbreaks too with Bhaker, Anantjeet Naruka-Maheshwari Chauhan, and Arjun Babuta finishing fourth in their respective events.

While an Olympic gold in the sport continues to elude since Abhinav Bindra's exploits in Beijing, the Paris Games brought in a breath of fresh air. A much-needed one.

Football- What's the new low Indian Football can achieve 

(By Aswathy Santosh)

2024 was a disastrous year for Indian football, marked by failures on and off the field. The men’s team, under new coach Manolo Márquez, endured their worst year in a decade, failing to win a single game.

They played 11 matches, lost six, drew five, and scored just four goals. Their dismal performance at the AFC Asian Cup, where they lost all three group games without scoring, highlighted their creative deficiencies. To make matters worse, India’s FIFA ranking plummeted from 102 to 126, one of the steepest declines in recent years.

The retirement of Sunil Chhetri left a massive void, while controversies marred Igor Štimac’s exit as head coach. The women’s team, once seen as more promising than the men’s, also struggled. Following Thomas Dennerby’s departure, Indian coaches took over, but controversies—including allegations against one coach for pressuring players to join her club—hindered progress. The team hit their lowest-ever FIFA ranking of 69 and exited the SAFF Championship in the semifinals.

Domestic football fared no better, plagued by corruption allegations, legal battles, and poor refereeing. On the continental stage, Indian clubs struggled, with Odisha FC losing 0-17 in the AFC Women’s Champions League. Indian football needs urgent reform as it heads into 2025.

Badminton- A promising year turned to disappointment

(By Sudipta Biswas)

Men's doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty regained their World No. 1 ranking after consistent performances, including runner-up finishes at the Malaysia Open Super 1000 and India Open Super 750.

They added two titles to their tally, winning the French Open and Thailand Open, though they faced a setback in the Paris Olympics, making a surprising exit in the quarterfinals.

Lakshya Sen, meanwhile, made a heartbreaking fourth-place finish in the Paris Olympics.

India’s women’s doubles pair Treesa Jolly and Gayatri Gopichand made history, qualifying for the BWF World Tour Finals and clinching their first Super 300 title at the Syed Modi International.

In singles, PV Sindhu ended a two-year title drought by winning the Syed Modi International.

The Paralympics spotlighted India’s para-shuttlers, with Nitesh Kumar clinching SL3 gold and Suhas Yathiraj achieving World No. 1 status. However, Pramod Bhagat faced a ban for anti-doping violations, missing the Paris Paralympics.

India also celebrated the rise of young talent, with Tanvi Patri claiming the U-15 title at the Badminton Asia Junior Championships. Meanwhile, the Badminton World Federation’s decision to host the 2025 World Junior Championships in Guwahati underscored India’s growing stature in the sport.

The year concluded with Tan Kim Her returning as Satwik-Chirag's coach.

Table Tennis- The ascent of Indian table tennis is being recognized by the world

(By Sudipta Biswas)

Youngster Sreeja Akula clinched her maiden international title at the WTT Feeder Corpus Christi in January and later became the first Indian to win a WTT Contender singles title in Lagos. Indian players also displayed their giant-killing acts in 2024. Sreeja stunned World No. 2 Wang Yidi during the ITTF World Team Championships, where Ayhika Mukherjee defeated World No. 1 Sun Yingsha.

In a historic feat, the Indian men’s and women’s teams qualified for the Olympics for the first time, while Sharath Kamal, competing in his fifth Olympics, was a flag-bearer at the Paris Games.

In October, India won historic bronze medals at the ATTU Asian Championships, including in women’s team and doubles events, with Ayhika and Sutirtha Mukherjee leading the charge for the country.

This year also saw Massimo Costantini returning as head coach, and Manika Batra contributed to Team Asia’s victory at the inaugural Waldner Cup. In the Ultimate Table Tennis, Goa Challengers won consecutive titles.

Women's Cricket- When will the Indian team win an ICC tournament?

(By Rahul Kargal)

The Indian women’s cricket team had plenty to look forward to in 2024 but as the year progressed, they were left scratching their heads and looking over their shoulder for inspiration, which wasn’t forthcoming in any way.

The Women’s T20 World Cup was a big-ticket item with the team expected to go deep into the tournament, if not win it.

But very few expected the debacle that awaited.

A shambolic performance ensued and a team that had previously reached the knockout stages in five of the last eight editions returned with their heads hanging in disappointment.

Subsequently, the team toured Australia and was blanked by the hosts, who laid bare the problems that persist in the squad.

And it took the blanking of a listless West Indies for the Indian women to restore some sort of spark when the light appeared to be fading.

There were, however, select performances that stood out in 2024.

In June, the team put up 603/6 against South Africa which turned out to be the highest team total in women’s Test cricket history.

Also, Smriti Mandhana let her bat do the talking and aggregated 1,659 runs across all formats in the ear. And then there was Richa Ghosh, who scored one of the fastest joint half-centuries in women’s T20 International history against the visiting West Indies in December.

While the moments of spectacle were few and far between, the team will look back on them and draw inspiration as new challenges await them in 2025.

Weightlifting- Mirabai Chanu, the only name carrying Indian weightlifting

(By Vithi Joat)

Mirabai Chanu defied the period of pain to ensure India was present at the Paris Olympics. In August, 4 '11' Chanu stepped into the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles, eyeing her second Weightlifting medal at the summer games.

However, her dream fell off with the barbell, and India had to settle for 4th place. And along with disbelief and tears came the yawing hole of “Who's next?”

Because by the next Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, Chanu will be 32. But despite no visible silver lining in sight, there seems to be a plan in place.

In an exclusive conversation with The Bridge, 49kg Dynamo explained that since she was in rehab, they decided to push for 21-year Gyaneshwari Yadav’s name for the World Wrestling Championship in Bahrain, “We needed the youth to understand what a world stage feels like.” Gyaneshwari finished fifth in the 49kg category with a total of 186kg total. However, the gulf between her total and the gold medallist's significant 217kg total leaves the immediate successor’s dream clipped.

Mirabai Chanu's coach, Vijay Sharma, signaled a ‘bright future for India’ after the Indian team came back home with 33 medals across age groups at the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships 2024 in Doha.

Where 16-year-old Jyoshna Sabar created an Asian record in the women's youth 40kg class with a total lift of 135 kg. The weightlifters will now aim for the 2026 Commonwealth Games qualification with the hope of translating the success of the youth.

But Indian weightlifting has witnessed stars disappearing with time. The champions of today have become the fables of old. Today it's just Mirabai Chanu at the top and lonely because no one else has defied gravity like her.

The process to fix Chanu is still on, “I want to be free of injury because carrying on a routine with being injured is not easy. You cannot do anything if that persists,” Mirabai wished with folded hands as the sun set on the horizon of 2024.

Hockey- The legacy sport gaining the recognition it deserves

(By Pritish Raj)

2024 was one of the best years for Indian hockey in terms of the results and what happened in the background for the development of the sport.

Indian men's team was on a roll winning a historic bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics and then dominating at the Continental level in the Asian Champions Trophy.

The women's team had a poor start to the year after they failed to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

However, the arrival of experienced coach Harendra Singh means that the team has started rebuilding and recently won the Asian Champions Trophy.

Indian men's team proved everybody wrong when they marched past Spain to win the second consecutive bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

But the highlight of the year was India's performance against Great Britain in the Olympics quarter-final.

Despite being one man down, the Indian lads defended like their lives were at stake for 60 minutes and the ever-green PR Sreejesh won it in a penalty shootout showing why he is the best India has ever produced.

Indian fans were blessed to witness the magic of coach Craig Fulton and how the Indian men's team is slowly instilling fear among the opponents.

The year ended on a high note for Indian hockey with the famous Hockey India League returning after a seven-year hiatus with eight teams in the men's tournament and four teams in the women's tournament.

The return of the league promises a bright future for Indian hockey.

Athletics: Neeraj Chopra remains the only shining spot

(By Pritish Raj)

It took an Olympic record-breaking performance from Pakistan's Arshad Nadeem to deny Neeraj Chopra a consecutive Olympic gold.

Despite a silver medal, Neeraj Chopra remained the only shining spot for Indian athletics in the year 2024. While the men's and women's relay teams promised, the final output was underwhelming.

The performance of the Indian athletes at the 2024 Paris Olympics was poor with very few of them even reaching their personal best.

The junior athletes also recorded a poor show at the U20 World Championships barring Jay Kumar and Sharukh.

However, with a World Continental Level 1 tour happening in India next year, it looks like the Indian athletes will get more exposure at home.

With this, we conclude our coverage of Indian sports in the year 2024 and we hope you had a great time following us and the Indian athletes.

See you in 2025!

Happy New Year 2025 from everyone at The Bridge.