It has been more than half a century since India, in either the men’s or women’s event, matched their best-ever showing at the Hockey World Cup. This year, both teams failed to reach the semi-finals, triggering pointed questions from two of the country’s most respected former players. While PR Sreejesh demanded accountability, Viren Rasquinha warned that a medal at the upcoming Asian Games could merely paper over deeper problems.
The Indian men’s team, which won three consecutive World Cup medals between 1971 and 1975, including the historic gold in 1975, saw its campaign unravel in the second round. India lost 1-3 to the Netherlands before suffering a 3-5 defeat to Argentina, ending their hopes of reaching the semi-finals.
The women’s team, meanwhile, put up a determined fight against Australia in their must-win final match, holding the Hockeyroos to a goalless draw. But with Australia needing only a draw to progress, India’s World Cup campaign also came to an end.
Sreejesh questioned whether India are building a team that can simply play attractive hockey or one capable of beating the world’s best.
“Here’s the uncomfortable question: Are we building a team to play good hockey, or a team capable of winning against the best in the world?” Sreejesh wrote on X.
The two-time Olympic bronze medallist also took aim at the repeated tendency to portray disappointing results in major tournaments as part of the learning process.
{{/usCountry}}The two-time Olympic bronze medallist also took aim at the repeated tendency to portray disappointing results in major tournaments as part of the learning process.
{{/usCountry}}“Stop hiding behind ‘learning’, ‘good hockey’ and future tournaments. The World Cup is not a rehearsal. It is the World Cup,” he wrote.
“So who is going to ask the difficult questions? Who is going to demand accountability? And most importantly… Does anyone actually care?”
Questions about the Indian team had already surfaced during the 2025/26 Pro League, in which they finished eighth among nine teams. India managed just four wins from 16 matches, finishing only above Pakistan.
Sreejesh was particularly unwilling to accept the argument that the upcoming Asian Games should soften the assessment of what happened at the World Cup.
“Don’t worry… the World Cup doesn’t matter. The Asian Games are coming. Win a medal there, and then we can start dreaming about LA 2028. Apparently, that’s enough to cover everything that went wrong at the World Cup,” he wrote.
Rasquinha, the former India captain and Olympic Gold Quest CEO, raised a similar concern in his social media post, pointing to the wider struggles of Asian hockey at the World Cup.
India were the only Asian side to advance to the second round. Pakistan, Malaysia and Japan failed to win a single match at the tournament.
“My worry is that agold medal for India at AG will paper over a lot of cracks in Indian Men’s [hockey],” Rasquinha wrote on X.
He called for “serious introspection” after the Asian Games, specifically identifying fitness, selection, tactics and squad depth as areas that need attention.
Sreejesh also questioned the different standards sometimes applied to India’s results.
“Men’s team loses to a top team — ‘It’s a learning experience.’ Beats an Asian team — ‘Great victory.’ Plays good hockey — ‘Good performance,’” he wrote.
His frustration also extended to India women’s chief coach Sjoerd Marijne, who was reportedly away from the team during the final phase of their World Cup preparations.
“Women’s chief coach on holiday just before the World Cup — and the girls still fought their hearts out and exceeded expectations. Credit to the players. But where is the accountability?” Sreejesh wrote.
“Do we really expect a team to perform at its best when the chief coach is away during the final phase of preparation?”
The Asian Games begin next month in Japan, where India’s men will defend the title they won for a record-equalling fourth time at the 2022 edition. The women won bronze in the same tournament. Both Indian teams have won medals at each of the last three Asian Games.