Hockey
Pursuit of an Olympic medal in hockey from LA to Tokyo with former player Joaquim Carvalho
The history of Indian hockey in the modern era abounds with tales of what could have been, for players and fans who continue to await a repeat of the gold-medal winning performance of Moscow 1980.
The British philosopher Julian Baggini once said that life is full of what-ifs - many of which could easily have been realities had just a few things been different.
Indeed, the history of Indian hockey in the modern era abounds with tales of what could have been, for players and fans who continue to await a repeat of the gold-medal winning performance of Moscow 1980.
Time stands eerily still with one agonizing decade giving way to another as a national team that stood triumphantly on the Olympic podium no less than 11 times fails to reach within striking distance of a twelfth.
Amidst the gloom, a few silver linings do, however, light up the horizon from time to time – like, at the Champions Trophy of 1985 when India faced West Germany in Perth.
As Carsten Fischer and Stefan Blocher made merry in the Indian circle, the Germans led India by a 5-1 margin and a comeback for Mohammad Shahid's side seemed all but impossible with eight minutes left in the second half of a 70-minute encounter.
Mohinder Pal Singh made no mistake from a PC in the 62nd minute and Shahid scored another in the 65th as the anxious Germans scrambled for cover.
Pargat Singh scored India's fourth with a couple of minutes left on the clock and the Indians earned a penalty stroke at the death.
Striding over to take the stroke was centre-half Joaquim Carvalho, an expert in the PS department, who made no mistake from the spot to help his team record a historic and memorable 5-5 draw - one, that few Indian hockey fans will ever forget.
The result helped raise the spirits of the Indian hockey fraternity a wee bit – a year after one of the best teams ever to have graced a hockey pitch missed out on a semi-final spot at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics.
Few can dispute the fact the LA Olympics was the event that dealt a killer blow to India's hopes - the repercussions of which continue to be felt to this day.
What exactly transpired during that fateful summer in LA?
Why did the defending champions who had one of the best teams ever fail to make it to the semi-finals - leading to a never-ending jinx that the Indians have failed to shake off ever since?
The anguish of Los Angeles 1984 with Joaquim Carvalho
Joaquim Carvalho was part of the dream Indian side at LA – and, in an exclusive interaction with The Bridge, the former Olympian and coach, takes us on momentous journey as he recounts, in vivid detail, the various factors that played a role in the nemesis of a great Indian team.
"Whenever we talk about the Los Angeles Olympics, it brings back a lot of sad memories, I would say. We were one of the teams that were the favorites for winning the gold medal along with the Australians."
"We had some very good preparation going into this tournament and right throughout the year we had beaten some of the top teams. We were not afraid of any team except Australia."
After losing 2-4 to the Aussies, the Indians conceded more goals than they would have liked to against the USA, Malaysia, and Spain despite earning full points, and were left needing a win against West Germany in the last and most crucial group encounter to qualify for the semi-finals.
The match, however, ended in a goalless draw which allowed the Germans to make it to the semi-finals.
"Zafar Iqbal got the ball right near the goal-mouth, at the side of the post and all he had to do was push the ball inside," recalls the 61-year-old veteran.
"He did push the ball from one end of the goal post but he effectively pushed it out through the other end. It was a narrowly-missed sitter."
"Of course, we can hardly blame Zafar Iqbal as there were several chances missed on the day despite the Indians dominating the game. Zafar himself always says that the missed goal always haunts him even now."
"Merwyn Fernandes hit the side netting. Hardeep Singh's shot hit the pads of the German goalkeeper and went out. Vineet Kumar's penalty corner hit the helmet of the goalkeeper and ricocheted over the post."
"Bad umpiring cost us at LA 1984"
The passion in Carvalho's voice gives way to shades of bitterness as he recalls the atrocious umpiring decisions that led to India's goal average taking a beating.
"We were playing against Malaysia and the Malaysians had a goal disallowed."
"The Malaysian player protested and the goal was subsequently allowed for no reason. The umpiring was bad against Spain as well and it all subsequently led to the must-win encounter against West Germany."
In the semi-finals, the West Germans went on to beat Great Britain, who had not qualified for the tournament, but had replaced the USSR which boycotted the games, finally losing to Pakistan in the big final.
"Irrespective of what anyone else says, when I look back, I can confidently say that the team of 1984 was the best team the Indians ever had after 1975," says Carvalho with an unmistakable sense of pride.
"Coach Balkrishan Singh who was one of the greatest tacticians in the world introduced some new strategies. We used to play the 5-3-2-1 traditionally, but he introduced us to the 4-4-2-1 formation."
"I am a strong advocate for Indian coaches – and like Balkrishan Singh, I feel there are several coaches in India today who are capable of coaching the national side just as well as the foreign coaches."
"I feel it is quite unfair that there is such a huge discrepancy between the salaries of the foreign and Indian coaches."
As the hint of distress revolving around the coaching debate gets quite pronounced, we take a leap into Seoul 1988 when the Indians were captained by MM Somaya.
"In 1988, as well, we had a chance of making it to the semi-finals but unfortunately we lost to Great Britain (0-3) in the last encounter after having done really well in the earlier group encounters."
"Post Seoul, I think the best chance we had of making it to the semi-finals came in 2000 at Sydney."
Sydney 2000 - India misses the last four by a whisker
Bolstered by names like Dhanraj Pillai, Gagan Ajit Singh, Deepak Thakur, and the ever-cool Dilip Tirkey in defence, the Indians were on a roll getting the better of Argentina and splitting points with hosts Australia before losing to South Korea.
A win against Spain raised Indian hopes which were soon to be cruelly dashed as the team coached by 1980 gold medallist Vasudevan Bhaskaran drew with lowly Poland.
The South Koreans who were level with India on 8 points after the group stages made it through to the semi-finals even though both sides were equal on goal aggregate and goal difference.
The Indians missed out on a place in the semi-finals because they had lost to South Korea in the group stages and the agony of not making it to the last four at the Olympics continued.
Trust the great hockey observer, Carvalho to talk us through decades of Olympic history as he recalls minute details of each match, each incident, and each excruciating moment with a rueful chuckle.
"Poland was the weakest side in the group and the Indians were leading 1-0 with just a minute left. It was the best chance we had, but they equalized."
Did Astro-Turf had any role to play at all in the decline of Indian hockey?
The Arjuna awardee from Mumbai deliberates at length on this oft-debated topic and concludes that the surface was in no way responsible for the slide that followed.
"As far as the skill factor is concerned, I do not feel Astro Turf had any role to play in India's decline. From a physical fitness perspective, however, there was a difference between playing on natural grass and playing on Astro Turf."
"Players need to have stronger legs, stronger muscles, and a stronger body. The ball travels a little faster and so the stick-body coordination has to be much better."
"Yet, we cannot blame Astro Turf for not making the semi-finals of big events or not getting results. It was a level playing field for everyone."
"In the 1970s, European teams had started reaching the finals even when tournaments were played on grass. India lost to Holland in the final of the 1973 World Cup at Utrecht."
"One of the selectors at WC 2018 could only name 3 players from the team"
The former coach refuses to hold back when it comes to fixing responsibility for bad performances saying selectors need to be made accountable.
"The federation and the selectors need to take moral responsibility when a team does not do well."
"I was there in Odisha during the 2018 World Cup. One of the selectors (who I cannot name) was asked by a journalist to name the 16 players who were representing India. He could not go beyond three names. These are the kind of selectors we have."
"The federation wants selectors who can toe their line."
India has the capacity to finish on the Tokyo podium
Despite the all-too-visible angst with regard to all that ails Indian hockey, Joaquim Carvalho doesn't hesitate even for a moment when asked what his expectations from Manpreet Singh and co. are at Tokyo 2020.
"This team has the capacity to finish on the podium and I do hope they finish on the podium. Mental strength is the key - as bouncing back from a bad day in the office can be tough at the Olympic Games."
Indeed, who knows better than the 61-year-old who continues to live and dream hockey with a level of passion and energy that could put a youngster to shame.
