The Indian hockey had some great moments in the year 2015, India women won the World Hockey League Round 2 tournament held in New Delhi in March. Following that tournament, the Indian men’s team finished third in the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament held in Ipoh. It was an excellent effort after a poor start to the tournament.
The next tournament for Indian women was the Hawkes Bay Cup where India finished a poor 7th defeating Japan in the classification match in April. The Indian men’s then defeated Japan in 4 match test series held Bhuvneshwar in May. India beat Japan 3- 0. The next tournament for both men and women’s team was the World Hockey league semifinals in Antwerp. The Indian men’s team finished fourth in the tournament while Indian women have finished fifth in the tournament and qualified for the Rio Olympics.
The Indian men’s coach Paul Van Ass was sacked by Hockey Authority of India. The Under 21 Volvo International for both men and women was held. The Indian men played some excellent hockey and finished fourth in the tournament while the women’s finished 3rd in the tournament.
The Indian men’s team then went European tour playing with France and Spain. The Indian defeated both France and Spain. The Indian team defeated France 2-0 and Spain by 2-1.
The Indian women’s team then went to China to play the 7th Junior Women’s Asia Cup. They played some excellent hockey in the tournament and finished a credible 4th in the tournament.
The Indian men’s team went to New Zealand where they created history by defeating them in the four-match test series by 2-1 which was a huge achievement. The next tournament was the 5th Sultan Johor Baru Cup where the Indian team lost to England in the finals and finished 2nd in the tournament. The next tournament for India was the junior’s men’s Asia Cup where they played some excellent hockey to win the tournament.
The Indian men’s team rose to number 6th in the rankings. The Indian senior hockey team then played 3 match test series against Australia in November. India lost to Australia 0-2.
India then hosted the World Hockey League finals where 8 teams participated in the tournament. The Indians were never expected to perform very in the tournament after such a poor start. The Indian men’s team clinched the bronze medal in major international ever after 33 years.
The Indian hockey had a great year with some excellent victories. Junior’s hockey also did an exceptional job. The Indian women’s hockey created history by qualifying for the Olympics after a long time.
Let’s hope that 2016 will bring more happiness to the people of India.