Pakistan, the brain behind the idea of the men’s World Cup hockey championship, had to wait for 19 years to host the tournament. The event was held in Pakistan for the first time at Lahore in 1990. Though Pakistan was supposed to host the inaugural championship in 1971, it was shifted to Barcelona following political upheaval in the country which culminated in the Bangladesh war.
Twelve teams figured in the tournament including holders Australia. India were grouped with Australia, Netherlands, France, Soviet Union and Argentina in Pool-A while West Germany, Pakistan, Spain, England, Canada and Ireland faced each other in Pool-B.
India fared miserably to lose four of its five group ties after managing a 1-1 draw with Soviet Union in the inaugural encounter. Argentina mauled India 5-3 after which France outplayed the team 2-1. More ignominy was heaped on the team as Netherlands and Australia won 5-3 and 3-2 respectively. Against Argentina, India led 2-0 before the defence caved in. Similarly, India led France 1-0 before conceding two goals. It must be said that the Indians were able to score goals, but the opponents toyed with the defence which conceded 16 goals.
Having finished last in the group, India finally managed a win when they beat Canada 2-1 in a classification match to compete for the ninth place. But in that encounter, they lost to Argentina 1-0 to finish tenth in the 12 team field.
Australia and Netherlands moved into the semifinal from Group-A while West Germany (winning all their five matches) and Pakistan qualified for the last four stage from Group-B.
Netherlands defeated West Germany 3-2 and Pakistan put it across Australia 2-1 to qualify for the summit clash. But Pakistan’s dream of winning the cup on home soil was dashed when Netherlands registered a 3-1 win in the final. Australia grabbed the third place by beating West Germany 2-1.
Australia, who had won the cup in 1986, got the opportunity to host the championship at Sydney in 1994. Twelve teams were in the fray again with India clubbed with Netherlands, Germany, South Korea, South Africa and Belgium in Group-B. A unified Germany was participating in the men’s World Cup for the first time. Pakistan, hosts Australia, England, Argentina, Spain and Belarus were in Group-A. Belarus had qualified to play in the World Cup for the first time.
India played better in this tournament but lost a spot in the semifinals. After beating South Korea 2-0, India secured another win over Belgium (4-2) but went down to superior opponents Netherlands (2-4) and Germany (1-2). It missed the bus by allowing South Africa to force a 2-2 draw. India finished third in the pool behind Netherlands and Germany who moved into the semifinal.
From the other group, Pakistan and Australia won four of their matches while losing one each. Pakistan, having outlasted Australia 2-1 in the group league, surprisingly went down 0-2 to England.
In the semifinals, Netherlands demolished Australia 3-1 while Pakistan scored over Germany 5-3 in the tie-breaker after being locked 1-1 in regular time. Pakistan won the trophy for the fourth time when they put it across Netherlands 4-3 in tie-breaker as the final ended 1-1. This was the last time that Pakistan entered the semifinal of the men’s World Cup. Australia beat Germany 5-2 to finish third.
The event moved to Utrecht in The Netherlands four years later with 12 contenders including India. The Indians were in Group-A with Germany, Netherlands, Canada, South Korea and New Zealand. Holders Pakistan was in Group-B along with Spain, Australia, England, Poland and Malaysia.
While the Indian performance at Sydney in 1994 was respectable, it hit rock bottom at Utrecht. The team could beat only New Zealand by a solitary goal while losing its other four group ties. They lost to Germany 4-1 while Netherlands steamrolled them 5-0. South Korea outlasted India 4-3 and Canada shunted them out of the tournament with a 4-1 victory.
Germany and Netherlands, as expected moved into the semifinals from Group-A while Australia and Spain qualified for the last four stage from the other pool. Pakistan could win only three matches while losing two.
(The writer is a senior journalist based in Bhubaneswar)