A reality check, not a stick check

India missed out on a podium finish in the recent men’s hockey Junior World Cup, but at that level the process is more important than the result. A look at what the performance says about the health of the pipeline to the senior team and what is needed to make the step up

As the music paused at Bhubaneswar’s Kalinga Stadium to facilitate the interaction between players and journalists after India’s loss to France in the bronze medal match of the men’s hockey Junior World Cup, a teenage girl in the upper tier of the stands shouted: “India, India”.

It was a rare gesture from a passionate fan trying to console the dejected home players, moving slowly with drooping shoulders and lowered eyes, by spreading some positivity. Perhaps she understood the burden of high expectations the juniors experienced in the backdrop of India achieving its first Olympic medal in 41 years.

It would have been nice to build on the Tokyo momentum, but India’s second fourth-place finish after 2005 at the JWC should not be viewed as a stick check on its progress. Rather, it is an opportunity to conduct a reality check ahead of iconic events such as the 2023 World Cup at home and the 2024 Paris Olympics.