Dear Indian Hockey Team

It was 2008. I still remember that day. Every newspaper out there flashed only one news. The Indian Hockey team failed to qualify Olympics for the first time in history. An eight-time Olympic Gold medalist was not able to qualify for the Olympics and it almost marked the end of an era for Indian Hockey.

It was also the first time I started watching the Olympics. Since we didn’t have a cable TV connection in our home, all I ever wanted to do is sit and watch the Olympic games all day long.

Though India qualified for Olympics in 2012, it completed last in the table with 0 wins which was pretty disappointing. From settling at 12th spot in 2012 Olympics to 8th spot in 2016 Olympics to winning a bronze medal in 2021 is not a cakewalk.

We all have read that hockey is the national game of India. But still, most of us don’t know the name of the players who were in the winning squad. We never played hockey in schools or saw someone play the game. No one whom we knew wanted to be a hockey player either. But every single Indian kid would’ve played cricket at least once in their lifetime or would’ve aspired to become a cricketer.

In spite of all these differences, this pack of 11 somehow managed to lift an Olympic medal after 40 years. It may not be a big thing for the people who follow sports occasionally. But for me, it is not just another medal which India had won in a sports event. It was a dream of a little boy who used to sit for hours in front of an old TV without knowing the rules of the match but hoping to win a medal every single time.