As the clock ticks nearer to the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023, with lower than 40 days to go, hockey legend Zafar Iqbal recalled his time with the Indian staff within the Seventies and Nineteen Eighties.
Zafar Iqbal was one of many new members of the Indian Men’s Hockey Team when he was given the accountability of representing the nation within the 1978 Men’s Hockey World Cup in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
“I performed my first sport within the take a look at sequence towards the Netherlands at dwelling in 1977. After that we had a couple of take a look at sequence abroad earlier than travelling to Argentina,” Iqbal recalled during Hockey India’s Favourite World Cup Memory Series.
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He went on to say that the team travelled to Argentina with the intent of defending the title. With several members of the 1975 World Cup-winning squad still on the roster, there was a strong belief that India can be a powerful contender for the trophy.
“All we wanted to do was to defend the trophy successfully. That was our only motivation before going into the tournament. There were several new players on the team and we were quite eager to perform on the big stage. There were also players from the 1975 World Cup team in our squad, and we were confident,” Iqbal mentioned.
India misplaced their opening encounter towards Canada within the match, earlier than getting a win over Australia. But a 0-7 defeat towards West Germany adopted by a 1-1 draw towards England, sealed India’s destiny and so they have been unable to qualify for the semifinals.
“Despite taking part in effectively within the match, we misplaced a couple of straightforward video games. We have been unable to get wins over England and Germany and have been unable to achieve the Semi-Finals. It was a giant blow for us on the time as a result of we have been the defending Champions,” Iqbal recalled.
India lost their final encounter in the tournament against Spain and finished in the sixth position in the tournament.
Iqbal, who also competed in the 1982 Men’s Hockey World Cup in Mumbai, went on to explain how hockey began to change in the 1970s and 1980s.
“During our time, hockey was played on the grass. But astroturf started replacing grass in most parts of the world as the 80s came around. Even though the 1982 World Cup was played on grass at home, we were unable to perform our best, and were unable to qualify for the Semi-Finals once again,” Iqbal additional mentioned.
“Now, Astro Turf has transformed hockey right into a sport of energy. The gamers have to be fitter and require extra power. We needed to adapt ourselves to the European type of attacking hockey now. We needed to change with the passage of time. Once Astro Turf was launched, we needed to regulate in line with the turf,” Iqbal added.
‘Tough group for India’
With the FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023 just around the corner, which is set to take place starting from January 13, Iqbal revealed his favourites for the tournament.
Australia, Belgium, Netherlands, India, Argentina, Germany, New Zealand, England, France, Korea, Malaysia, Spain, South Africa, Japan, Chile, and Wales are the 16 teams, who will be competing in the tournament.
“At the world-level competitions, you never know who will be at the top form. Several teams are very strong such as Belgium, Netherlands, Australia, England, Spain, and India,” Iqbal mentioned.
He additional mentioned that the continued soccer World Cup is a testomony that any staff might be profitable on any given day.
“Former World Champions Spain, Germany, and Brazil have all been eradicated on the soccer World Cup. You by no means know which staff can get a win over which staff in such tournaments. It is all the time unpredictable and FIH Odisha Hockey Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023 is unpredictable as effectively,” he added.
India are positioned in Group D together with Spain, England, and Wales. Iqbal believes that it’s a powerful group for India.
“We will have tough matches in the group stages. We have Spain, England, and Wales, and all are equally strong in their own right,” Iqbal mentioned.
“I’m certain if India finishes on the rostrum, it is going to be a terrific achievement for Hockey India. We have a number of gutsy gamers on the staff, who all the time put of their greatest, and who have been the heroes of the Tokyo Olympics. So, we hope they’ll repeat the success as soon as once more,” he signed off.
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