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          No. 7: India win the 1975 hockey World Cup

          Adrian Murrell/Getty Images
          • Jayaditya Gupta, Consulting Editor, ESPN.inJun 30, 2016, 11:08 AM
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              Executive editor, India A football lover and a veteran of the print media, Jayaditya sold out on both to join the crazy gang at ESPNcricinfo. It's a decision that often left him wondering whether he'd stumbled into the wrong room by mistake, till he realised that many of his colleagues switch the TV channel from cricket to football when they think nobody's watching. He does have cricketing heroes: Viv Richards and Steve Waugh share space with Steve Coppell (the player and manager) and Bryan Robson (the player!). Having covered two world cups (the football version) and a Champions League final, he can now set his sights on fulfilling other ambitions - including the launch of "Footinfo". Watch this space for more details...

          The story till then

          India's domination of world hockey, winning six Olympic golds in a row since 1928, had ended by the 1960s. Two bronze-medal finishes in 1968 and 1972 showed that the balance of power had shifted to Pakistan and to the more muscular game of Australia and the European teams. In the 1973 World Cup, India finished runners-up to Netherlands, going down on penalty strokes. In the 1975 tournament they were patchy in the group phase - beating England, West Germany and Ghana and drawing with Australia and losing to Argentina - but goal difference saw them top the group and earn a semi-final spot against hosts Malaysia. They won that match in extra time to enter the final, against Pakistan.

          The moment
          Pakistan took the lead in the final thanks to Zahid Sheikh's shot after a mazy run. India levelled after half-time when Surjit Singh converted a penalty corner. The winner was scored, fittingly enough, by Dhyan Chand's son, Ashok Kumar. It wasn't without controversy, though; the ball hit the post and bounced back, but despite Pakistan's protests, the umpire deemed it had crossed the line and awarded the goal.

          The reaction
          "Our biggest prize was the love and respect we got from the countrymen, but it is unfortunate that despite winning the World Cup, not many of our team-mates were considered for Arjuna Award."
          - Aslam Sher Khan, team member

          Expert view
          "Jubilant scenes were witnessed throughout India. The team was felicitated by several state governments and given cash awards, gifts and allotted flats. The team was also greeted by president Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and prime minister Mrs Indira Gandhi at a special reception."
          - Novy Kapadia, journalist and historian

          The story since
          Not very good, sadly. Hockey switched from grass to AstroTurf, changing the nature of the game from touch and dribble to power, and India's resurgence was nipped in the bud. The very next year they failed, for the first time, to win an Olympic medal, and though they won gold in 1980, it was largely because of the boycott of the strongest teams. Since then, India have not won a World Cup or Champions Trophy or an Olympic medal of any colour. The bitterness in Aslam Sher Khan's comments (and the title of his autobiography) also point to how hockey has fallen in stature.

          Recommended reading
          To Hell with Hockey by Aslam Sher Khan