It’s been a few surreal months for the Indian hockey team. The team, captained by Sardar Singh, clinched the Glasgow Commonwealth Games silver, beat arch-rivals Pakistan for the Asian Games gold, won the Test series 3-1 against Australia and finished a creditable fourth at the Champions Trophy.
The year gone by could be considered pretty good after Indian hockey had slipped into the deep abyss of despair following the team’s ninth-place finish at the London Olympics. There wasn’t much hope around, but the current side bounced back, giving joy and hope to the hockey fans.
And the best compliment for their recent performance has come from none other than the legendary Australian forward Jamie Dwyer, who feels the current Indian team is the best he has seen in over a decade. Dwyer, a three-time Olympian, described the Indian team as the “most consistent and attractive”.
“This team is at par with the Indian team of 2002-03. Those guys were great and this current set-up of the Indian players is the most consistent, competitive, attractive and forward-looking. This is the best Indian team I have seen in a while ,” Dwyer told The Tribune.
“This team is moving in right direction, towards the 2016 Rio Olympics. These guys are constantly learning new things and a bit of a credit for their success goes to Hockey India League (HIL),” added Dwyer, who would be playing for Punjab Warriors for the third straight season.
Dwyer, however, warned the Indian team management to use “technically-gifted” Sardar more prudently, keeping in mind the Rio Games. The 28-year-old has been playing non-stop since the 2010 World Cup, where his prowess came to the fore. He recently played his 200th match for India during the tour to Australia. In the last four years, Sardar hasn’t been rested for a single tournament.
“You need to use him more judiciously. What I have observed about Sardar is that he was really good between 2010 CWG and 2012 London Games, but after that his performance has dipped drastically. Since then, he has not been the same player. He belongs to big tournaments,” he said.
As the discussion veered towards his own game and the possibility to hang up boots after the Rio Olympics, Dwyer said, “Yes, I am definitely going to retire after the Rio Games. I would be playing hockey for fun after that.”
Asked if the Indian hockey lovers would see him taking up the coaching role with Hockey India (HI), Dwyer replied, “Well, I will definitely consider the offer if it lands at my door step. It’s still some time to go before I retire. Let it come to me first.”