Carrying on his duty as a 'Naik' in the Indian army, Dhyan
Chand participated in the tournaments such as Beighton Cup and Lakshmibilas
Cup, which were held annually. Representing Jhansi Heroes, a club which he
founded along with his other 'hockey' enthusiasts was a regular in winning
these prestigious trophies at that time.
TRIP DOWN UNDER
In December 1934, IHF (Indian Hockey Federation) had decided
to send the Indian team for a tour of New Zealand for the upcoming year.
Naturally, Dhyan Chand was selected and he was thrilled by this prospect as it
brought back fond memories of his 1926 tour. A team composed mostly of
youngsters were selected with Behram Doctor and Pankaj Gupta entrusted with the
job of being the managers.
The team assembled in Madras on April 13, 1935 where the
first match of the tour was played. Then the team left for Colombo where they
played a further two exhibition matches. Finally on April 17, the Indian team
left for Fremantle, Australia on the S.S. Largs Bay of the Aberdeen and
Commonwealth Line. Indian hockey was still struggling to put together basic funds
and hence could not afford travel through air.
A STOP OVER IN AUSTRALIA FOR HOCKEY
While the destination was New Zealand; the prospects of
Indian hockey team visiting Australia, many of their state hockey associations
requested over wire whether they could play few matches in major Australian
cities. The same was informed to the New Zealand authorities and they gave the
green signal for the Indian team to play in Australia before arriving in New
Zealand.
On April 27, the Indian team landed in Perth, Western
Australia. A hockey match and followed by a reception from the local
authorities were soon to be the norm for these players. After Perth, it was
time to visit the land of Sir Donald Bradman, Adelaide.
In Adelaide, the mayor of the city gave a reception to the
Indian team. During that occasion, Pankaj Gupta requested if he could arrange
for the team to meet Don Bradman, who was then in the city. Whose fortune was
it? Dhyan Chand meeting Don Bradman or the other way around? Bradman visited
the Indian team at the City Hall and posed for a photograph too! The same evening,
Bradman witnessed his first ever hockey match which saw Indians score a
thumping win against a South Australia XI 10-1.I bet he would have enjoyed for
sure; as the goal scoring spree matched Bradman's knack of scoring runs.
MAORI SHIELD
Next stop was Melbourne and then Sydney before the team left
for Wellington on May 13. During that tour the Indian team were welcomed by the
Maoris at Kaiti. After giving a traditional haka welcome, Maoris enquired if a
friendly match with All-Maori XI was a possibility. A match with Maoris was
scheduled at the end of the tour. On that occasion, Maoris presented the Indian
team with a carved shield - which became the trophy for the Inter-Provincial
Championship in India until partition and then it went to Pakistan and never
returned. The proprietors of The Hindu and Sport & Pastime, presented a new
trophy - the Rangaswami Memorial Cup during the 1951 championship in Chennai.
The tour to down under was rounded off with a hurried match
against the Australian team which the Indians won comfortably 12-0. Three more
matches in Ceylon, two more in Chennai and the 1935 tour finally culminated on
September 10.
A total of 48 matches were played on that tour with India
scoring 584 goals and conceding only 40 goals. Dhyan Chand scored 201 goals from
43 matches he played. Not surprisingly, India won all its 48 matches on that
grand tour.
SELECTION FOR BERLIN OLYMPICS
To defend the Olympic gold medal, the IHF did not hesitate
much in deciding to send a team for the 1936 Olympics. The same norm like the
previous two editions were followed and Bengal was the automatic choice for
hosting the Inter-Provincial championships - which also served as a platform
for selecting the Olympic team. Dhyan Chand once again did not take part as the
army and IHF felt he had done enough to be in the team. This fact bothered Dhyan
Chand and he could not do anything about it.
Thirteen teams took part in the championships. After a
series of matches, the final showdown was between Bengal and Manavadar. Bengal
won the close game 1-0 and took the Maori shield - which now served as the
official trophy for the winners. Immediately after the tournament, the
selection panel from IHF chose 18 players. IHF President Sir Jagadish Prasad
(Member, Viceroy's Commission) threw in his hat and chose Dhyan Chand as the
captain. He was to be ably supported by Jagannath as the manager and Pankaj
Gupta as the assistant manager. And after having been a pivot in the previous
two editions, Dhyan Chand finally got his due - a simple man with humble
background was now given the task to lead the Indian team at the Olympics. His
dream is no longer a dream!
A RARE LOSS
The grand tour began with a match against Delhi on June 16,
a game which the Olympic team lost by 4 goals to one. Was this the right team?
or was it just one-off day similar to the match which was played against Bombay
prior to the team's departure to Amsterdam?
More so for Dhyan Chand, who did not take this defeat easily
and pondered whether India would lose under his captaincy at the Olympics. The
team then won their matches at Jhansi, Bhopal, Chennai, Bangalore and in Mumbai
before setting foot on the P&O line Ranpura on June 27.
As the ship sailed on the Arabian sea, it was tough on some
of the new players who were not used to the roughness of the sea and plus it
was the monsoon season. The journey was to Marseilles with a stopover at Malta.
From Marseilles, the team had to take a train to Paris, where the squad spent a
day visiting some of the marvels Paris is well-known for.
BERLIN FOR THE GAMES
A night train to Berlin from Paris on a non-sleeping third
class seats was the way the Olympic gold medallists and the defending champions
reached the capital city of Germany. From then on, the hospitality of the
organising committee ensured the Indian players were well looked after. Unlike
the temporary structures used at LA, the Olympic village at this edition was a
pure steel and brick affair.
It was 1936 and Adolf Hitler was just a few years away from
unleashing his dark side. He used Olympics to demonstrate to the world the
progress Germany had made and showcase its power of the military regime. People
with military attire were everywhere; be it Hermann Goering or Dr. Goebbel or
the German athletes - majority of them participating came from the army.
On July 17 the Indian team faced a German international side
as a part of their practice match. A shock defeat at the hands of the host, a
result which came as a surprise. How well have the German side had made great
strides in hockey. Dhyan Chand and the two managers sat and discussed the
line-up and seeing the poor form of India's inside-right, an SOS was sent to
IHF to draft in a replacement player in place of Masood. Dara was sent and he
only reached Berlin on the day of their penultimate match. This replacement was
a contingency plan to tackle the German side should they meet India in the
finals. Indian team played another seven matches before taking the Olympic
field and won these games without any hiccups.
THREE IN A ROW
First match against Hungary - result 4-0. Next up USA and
this time the defence of the American team was far better than the previous
edition as they lost the match 0-7. Two matches and two wins - surely it was
not making headlines. Indians were expected to win every match they played; the
only question remained by how many goals!
Japan fought hard and kept the score 0-0 for the first twenty
minutes. Then the goals came in a spree and the final score went in India's
favour 9-0. Next up was France, a calk walk if you may call it! 10-0 and India
into the finals and this time against Germany.
THE FINALE
The finals of the clash between the best two hockey teams
was postponed as a result of rain. With a bad pitch and scars from the earlier
defeat to the German side, the Indian team wasted no time in requesting for the
finals to be played next day. Last day of the Olympics, these two teams clashed
on the morning of 15 August, a date which is forever associated with India and
back then it was just another day.
In front of the 40,000 people and against a confident and
well-matched German side, the battle was on. Germany adopted India's tactics of
short passes which helped them to keep the score down to 0-1 at half-time. The
last half saw Indians unleash an all-out attack on the Germans and score 7
goals. Germans pulled one back - the only goal they managed to score in the
finals and it also was the only goal conceded by the Indian team in the
tournament. Dhyan Chand scored yet another hatrick and this time he led India
for a third successive Olympic gold medal.
A special correspondent from the Hindu summed had to say
this - "The game was played at a fast pace and was packed with thrilling
incidents. The Germans undercut and lifted the ball, but the Indian team
countered with brilliant half-volleying and amazing long shots. Dhyan Chand
discarded his spiked shoes and stockings and played with bare legs and rubber
soles and became speedier in the second half."
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| Indian team for the 1936 Olympics Image Courtesy - The Hindu |
MYTH WITH HITLER
Growing up this story was a thing of a legend. I am not sure
if there is any substance to it. The story goes this way that Hitler amazed by
Dhyan Chand's play offered him a big post in his army if he accepted to play
for Germany. Now I wonder, why on earth will Hitler do such a thing? But again,
its Hitler!
As far I can track or what I have read from Dhyan Chand's
autobiography, there is no mention of this story. Perhaps, he might have given
this offer in private and the matter remained that way. Hitler was present at
the victory ceremony and at the grand banquet which was held in the Deustche
Hall right after the closing ceremony. Dhyan Chand along with his comrades left
the banquet early as they had to board the train to commence their post-Olympic
tour of the Continent.
IT ENDED THE WAY IT BEGAN
The last of the tour match was played in Zürich on a gravel
ground lit by floodlights. On September 17, the team on board the P&O
steamer Strathmore sailing to Mumbai. The heroes were on their way home and
what kind of reception would they get this time around? In the railway stations
of Germany there were many enthusiasts gathered to greet the Indian players who
had to be cordoned by volunteers. Imagine what would be the state in India. The
Ballard Pier unlike the first time had just two representatives - Behram Doctor
from Bombay Hockey Association and Mukherjee from Bombay Olympic Association.
And the heroes went on with their schedule and played out their remaining
matches. In total, the 1936 tour comprised out of 39 matches. 37 wins and just
two defeats (Delhi XI and German XI ).
END NOTE
Dhyan Chand continued playing hockey and his promotions
within the army came frequently. Right after the Olympics, he was made an
'Other Rank' and in 1938 as a Jamadar. WW II curtailed his international hockey
career and more so the Olympics. He became a Lieutenant in 1943 and a Captain, a
year after India got its independence. He played his final match in April 1949
at the age of 44 and many claim he still was in top form that day. In 1956, at
the age of 51, he finally retired from the army with the rank of Major. Indian
hockey team in 1956 had won its sixth gold medal - six in a row from Amsterdam
till Melbourne. In present day India, Dhyan Chand's birthday (29 August) is
celebrated as National Sports Day.
Dhyan Chand taught hockey post retirement at several places
and on 3 December 1979 he was gone. A few months later, the Indian hockey team
won its last gold medal at the 1980 Moscow Olympics. And since then the team
has never finished above fifth.
Internal politics, power struggles, I vs. the team, narrow
mindedness and the list goes on. I believe it is an insult that so far Indian
hockey has not been able to adapt to the modern requirements. There was a time
when all the teams in the world turned to India and even copied its style to
play better.
And now, where have we headed for and whom should we turn
to?
