Payback for 1982
Negi, labelled villain of unforgettable loss to Pak in Delhi, feels Indian hockey redeemed itself yesterday.
Mir Ranjan Negi was a happy man yesterday. The former India goalkeeper felt relieved that a custodian was solely responsible for country’s Asian Games victory after 16 years. But the icing on the cake was the Pakistan factor.
Negi was part of the 1982 Asiad team that suffered a humiliating 1-7 defeat against the arch-rivals in the final. He still remembers the tragedy that befell the team that day. “Even today I try and think what had gone wrong that day. It had hit us suddenly,” recalled Negi.
You can lose to any team, but not lose to Pakistan. The suffering and the taunts get unbearable. Negi experienced it first hand. “Ministers, including Rajiv Gandhi, visited the Athletes Village. They would try and pep us up. But their talk would have an adverse effect on the players. We were getting nervous by the day. Mohammed Shahid was my room partner. Both of us just tossed and turned in our beds two days before the match. We were nervous before we entered the field,” he described the scenario.
Negi thinks no team would have felt as much pressure as the Indian hockey team of 1982. He reasoned, “It was on the home ground, it was the first time colour television came into India, it was the first time a match was to be shown live on television.”
Even while the team approached the final day, there was no strategy in place. “In those days, the coach did not impart technical gyan. All they would do is encourage the players with slogans like “jaan lagaa kar khelo. Desh ke liye jaan de do” (Play your heart out. Sacrifice your life for the country),” the former goalie said.
Rajinder Singh Sr was down with injury. He was a star in the Champions Trophy before the Asian Games and had even scored a hat-trick against Pakistan. Negi said the pressure showed even on the team management. “They were forced to change the team at the last moment and brought in Rajinder Singh Sr. Rajinder could not even walk, but there were talks that political pressure forced the management to include him in the playing XI. He turned out to be the biggest liability.”
It took 70 minutes to change Negi’s life for the worse. No one could lift his face and look at the crowd. “A day after the match we all felt there was a death in the family. No one was talking. There was nothing to talk about. There were just blank stares at one another. Although we had won a silver, the atmosphere was that of gloom,” he said.
Talking about India in Incheon, Negi felt it was a happy ending. For him, India’s efforts against South Korea in the semi-finals did not matter. “Even in yesterday’s match, we did not want a silver. It was important to win against Pakistan and more importantly qualify for the Rio Olympics.”
Emotions run high in an India-Pakistan encounter and Negi is the testimony for that. “If you win they make you a hero out of you. If you lose I know what they can do to you,” he signed off.
GOLDEN MOMENTS
1966, Bangkok
Two years after winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, India beat Pakistan 1-0 in the final with Balbir Singh (Railways) scoring the only goal in the sixth minute of the extra-time following a brilliant solo run. After gaining possession in the midfield, Balbir, known for his acceleration, cut through the Pakistani defence on the right flank before unleashing a shot from a near-impossible angle. Balbir had suffered a hit on the knee in the first half and was forced to leave the field for five minutes to receive treatment before rejoining the match. Ironically, the Indian team left Bangkok at the very last moment after Prime Minister intervened to resolve a dispute over funds between the IOA and the Government.
The team
Shankar Laxman (captain), Jagdeep Singh, Prithipal Singh, Gurbux Singh, Dharam Singh, Mohinder Lal, Harmek Singh, Balbir Singh , Jagjit Singh, Anderson L Frank, Haripal Kaushik, VJ Peter, Balbir Singh , Inder Singh, Balbir Singh , Harbinder Singh, Tarsem Singh and Noel Toppo.
1998, Bangkok
India had their heroes in skipper Dhanraj Pillai who scored 11 goals in six matches, and goalkeeper Ashish Ballal whose performance in the final against Korea was outstanding. India had raced through their league matches, beating Singapore 9-0, Bangladesh 7-0, China 2-1 and Korea 2-1 to top the group. India went on to defeat Japan 3-1 in the semi-finals to set up a gold medal match with Korea. The final was tense as Korea struck first but Pillai equalised in the first-half. The 1-1 deadlock persisted even after half-time, leading to tie-breaker. Coach MK Kaushik opted to retain Ballal in the goal overlooking penalty stroke specialist AB Subbaiah. The move was justified as Ballal brought off two grand saves as India won the tie-breaker 4-2 with Mohd Riaz, Baljit Singh Dhillon, Ramandeep Singh and Mukesh Kumar converting.
The team
Ashish Ballal, AB Subbiah, Dilip Tirkey, Anil Aldrin, Lazarus Barla, Baljit Singh Saini, Sandeep Somesh, M Riaz, Ramandeep Singh, Thirumalvalavan, Mukesh Kumar, Sab rkey, Baljit Dhillon, Dhanraj Pillay (captain), Sameer Dad and L Prabhakaran.
Mir Ranjan Negi was a happy man yesterday. The former India goalkeeper felt relieved that a custodian was solely responsible for country’s Asian Games victory after 16 years. But the icing on the cake was the Pakistan factor.
Negi was part of the 1982 Asiad team that suffered a humiliating 1-7 defeat against the arch-rivals in the final. He still remembers the tragedy that befell the team that day. “Even today I try and think what had gone wrong that day. It had hit us suddenly,” recalled Negi.
What followed that defeat was not bad -- it was the worst that could happen to a sports person. “Even before I left the field, the fans started abusing me. People pelted stones at my home in Indore breaking window panes. I was slowly going into depression. I was the first victim of yellow journalism. Some journalists wrote that I had fixed the match,” said Negi, who was also the goalkeeping coach when India beat South Korea to win gold in Bangkok in 1998.
You can lose to any team, but not lose to Pakistan. The suffering and the taunts get unbearable. Negi experienced it first hand. “Ministers, including Rajiv Gandhi, visited the Athletes Village. They would try and pep us up. But their talk would have an adverse effect on the players. We were getting nervous by the day. Mohammed Shahid was my room partner. Both of us just tossed and turned in our beds two days before the match. We were nervous before we entered the field,” he described the scenario.
Negi thinks no team would have felt as much pressure as the Indian hockey team of 1982. He reasoned, “It was on the home ground, it was the first time colour television came into India, it was the first time a match was to be shown live on television.”
Even while the team approached the final day, there was no strategy in place. “In those days, the coach did not impart technical gyan. All they would do is encourage the players with slogans like “jaan lagaa kar khelo. Desh ke liye jaan de do” (Play your heart out. Sacrifice your life for the country),” the former goalie said.
Rajinder Singh Sr was down with injury. He was a star in the Champions Trophy before the Asian Games and had even scored a hat-trick against Pakistan. Negi said the pressure showed even on the team management. “They were forced to change the team at the last moment and brought in Rajinder Singh Sr. Rajinder could not even walk, but there were talks that political pressure forced the management to include him in the playing XI. He turned out to be the biggest liability.”
It took 70 minutes to change Negi’s life for the worse. No one could lift his face and look at the crowd. “A day after the match we all felt there was a death in the family. No one was talking. There was nothing to talk about. There were just blank stares at one another. Although we had won a silver, the atmosphere was that of gloom,” he said.
Talking about India in Incheon, Negi felt it was a happy ending. For him, India’s efforts against South Korea in the semi-finals did not matter. “Even in yesterday’s match, we did not want a silver. It was important to win against Pakistan and more importantly qualify for the Rio Olympics.”
Emotions run high in an India-Pakistan encounter and Negi is the testimony for that. “If you win they make you a hero out of you. If you lose I know what they can do to you,” he signed off.
GOLDEN MOMENTS
1966, Bangkok
Two years after winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, India beat Pakistan 1-0 in the final with Balbir Singh (Railways) scoring the only goal in the sixth minute of the extra-time following a brilliant solo run. After gaining possession in the midfield, Balbir, known for his acceleration, cut through the Pakistani defence on the right flank before unleashing a shot from a near-impossible angle. Balbir had suffered a hit on the knee in the first half and was forced to leave the field for five minutes to receive treatment before rejoining the match. Ironically, the Indian team left Bangkok at the very last moment after Prime Minister intervened to resolve a dispute over funds between the IOA and the Government.
The team
Shankar Laxman (captain), Jagdeep Singh, Prithipal Singh, Gurbux Singh, Dharam Singh, Mohinder Lal, Harmek Singh, Balbir Singh , Jagjit Singh, Anderson L Frank, Haripal Kaushik, VJ Peter, Balbir Singh , Inder Singh, Balbir Singh , Harbinder Singh, Tarsem Singh and Noel Toppo.
1998, Bangkok
India had their heroes in skipper Dhanraj Pillai who scored 11 goals in six matches, and goalkeeper Ashish Ballal whose performance in the final against Korea was outstanding. India had raced through their league matches, beating Singapore 9-0, Bangladesh 7-0, China 2-1 and Korea 2-1 to top the group. India went on to defeat Japan 3-1 in the semi-finals to set up a gold medal match with Korea. The final was tense as Korea struck first but Pillai equalised in the first-half. The 1-1 deadlock persisted even after half-time, leading to tie-breaker. Coach MK Kaushik opted to retain Ballal in the goal overlooking penalty stroke specialist AB Subbaiah. The move was justified as Ballal brought off two grand saves as India won the tie-breaker 4-2 with Mohd Riaz, Baljit Singh Dhillon, Ramandeep Singh and Mukesh Kumar converting.
The team
Ashish Ballal, AB Subbiah, Dilip Tirkey, Anil Aldrin, Lazarus Barla, Baljit Singh Saini, Sandeep Somesh, M Riaz, Ramandeep Singh, Thirumalvalavan, Mukesh Kumar, Sab rkey, Baljit Dhillon, Dhanraj Pillay (captain), Sameer Dad and L Prabhakaran.
