A look at where India stands in 10 major sports

7.Hockey

The Indian hockey team

If you are a supporter of Indian hockey, then you definitely will be optimistic about this present group of players. The faithful fans of the sport have had reason to feel cheerful about this team, who have done well in the last 12-18 months.

The team led by Sardar Singh clinched its maiden FIH medal in December and last month finished runners-up at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. The key thing about the latter was India went into it with youngsters like Harmanpreet Singh, who showed that he could definitely be one to look out for in the future.

The important thing obviously would be to not sit back on the laurels and if the administrators can continue to nurture talent at the grassroots, then there is definitely enough to feel OPTIMISTIC about Indian hockey.

The Women’s hockey team has also delivered some fine performances in recent times, having qualified for the Olympics for the first time after a gap of 36 years and provide a lot to be hopeful about in the future