New Delhi [India], August 15 (ANI): India’s sporting journey in the post-Independence era has been one filled with highs and lows that make up for a thrilling rollercoaster ride. Several Indians have rewritten record books with history-making title wins, milestones and medals, which have made their coming generations take up sport as seriously as their academics. These victories have done their bit to turn sports into a serious career option, paving the way for a booming sports economy in the years to come.
From dusty playgrounds to the grandest stages of global sport, India’s journey since 1947 has been written with sweat, spirit, and unyielding dreams. In a country where sports have often carried the hopes of a billion, some victories have gone beyond the scoreboard; they have become national memories, etched in collective pride.
-India’s several Olympic firsts: The Olympics have been the stage for some of India’s most defining breakthroughs. In 1952 at Helsinki, wrestler KD Jadhav clinched bronze in the men’s 57 kg freestyle wrestling category, becoming the first individual Olympic medalist for India after independence. Four years later, in Melbourne, the Indian men’s hockey team, in a sport they had dominated for decades, won gold by defeating Pakistan, their first Olympic gold in hockey for independent India and the sixth in a row for the nation.
In 1996 at Atlanta, tennis ace Leander Paes brought home a bronze in men’s singles, becoming the first Asian to win an Olympic tennis medal and the only Indian to do so to date. Sydney 2000 saw weightlifter Karnam Malleswari lift herself into history by winning bronze and becoming the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal. Beijing 2008 was a watershed year as shooter Abhinav Bindra struck gold, India’s first-ever individual Olympic gold. In the same Games, wrestler Sushil Kumar won bronze before going on to secure silver at London 2012, becoming the first Indian to win two individual Olympic medals.
The 2020 Tokyo Games (held in 2021) gave India its first-ever athletics gold medal through javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, whose triumph sparked a wave of interest in track and field. Most recently, at Paris 2024, shooter Manu Bhaker became the first Indian to win two medals in the same Olympics, adding another golden page to the country’s Olympic story.
-Team India’s football glory: With the Indian football being an interesting case study of highs and lows, the Asian Games gold in New Delhi back in 1951 and in the 1962 edition at Jakarta stand as country’s crowning jewels in the ‘beautiful game’.
-India’s first-ever Test match, series win in 1952: After gaining international status back in 1932, India’s grind paid off when they achieved their first-ever Test win over England at Chepauk in 1952. Vinoo Mankad’s 12-wicket haul helped India take down England by an innings and eight runs, levelling the five-match series 1-1.
It was in the same year that Team India also won their first-ever Test series and what a better way to do it by defeating arch-rivals Pakistan on home soil? After the win in the first Test, Pakistan managed to level the series in Lucknow during 2nd Test, while India took a lead in the next Test. The final two Tests ended in draws, giving Team India a highly cherished 2-1 series win. All-rounder Mankad’s 25 wickets in the series, including a 13-wicket haul in the Delhi Test, were a massive standout. Legends like Polly Umrigar and Vijay Hazare also got their coveted Test tons.
-Indian Hockey rules the world in 1975: In 1975, at Kuala Lumpur, the men’s hockey team lifted their first and only Men’s Hockey World Cup. India beat arch-rivals Pakistan 2-1, with legendary Ashok Kumar netting the match-sealing goal in the 51st minute. After years of glory at Olympics, Team India had arrived in World Cup as well.
-Padukone conquers All England title: Badminton legend Prakash Padukone became the first Indian to win the prestigious All England Open in 1980, inspiring a generation to follow. Pullela Gopichand repeated the feat in 2001. These two wins laid down the foundation for India’s rise in badminton circles, with PV Sindhu, Saina Nehwal, Kidambi Srikanth, HS Prannoy and Lakshya Sen and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy-Chirag Shetty raising the tricolour high either at multi-sporting events or in the BWF World Tour circuit.
-Kapil’s men take the cup, take the power: In 1983, at Lord’s, Kapil Dev’s men defeated the most powerful team of that time, the West Indies, by 43 runs to win the World Cup. With just one win in the previous two editions, the Indians headed into the tournament as massive underdogs, but crushed giants like WI, Australia and England on their way to the title, shifting the power-centre of the sport forever and snatching it from the older powers with their sheer determination and self-belief.
-Vishwanathan the Grandmaster: In 1988, chess prodigy Viswanathan Anand earned the title of India’s first-ever Grandmaster at 18 years of age, paving the way for the upcoming generation of chess icons. When one watches young prodigies like world champion D Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, R Praggnanandhaa, Divya Deshmukh secure titles and milestones effortlessly these days, one cannot help but see a little bit of ‘Vishy’ in all of them.
-Bhupathi goes grand: In 1997, Mahesh Bhupathi made history as the first Indian Grand Slam winner, claiming the French Open mixed doubles with Japan’s Rika Hiraki. His partnership with Leander Paes, leading to three Grand Slam title wins, enthralled Indian audiences with their gameplay. Mahesh’s triumph was a starting point of India making their mark in tennis Grand Slams, with Paes, Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna getting their hands on some of tennis’ most prestigious titles in the years that followed.
-Dhoni’s triple delight for cricket fans: After a heartbreaking group stage exit in the 2007 50-over WC, it was as if fans had lost faith in their heroes and emotions of frustration and hate began to replace feelings of adoration and love. Arrived a long-haired MS Dhoni, putting Jharkhand on the cricketing map by leading India to the inaugural ICC T20 World Cup 2007, ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 at home soil by beating Sri Lanka in Mumbai and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy in the UK. In this process of becoming the first captain to win all white-ball ICC titles, Dhoni restored India’s dominance in the game, fans’ love for the sport knew no bounds. Several new stars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, etc, were a product of Dhoni’s backing and instrumental in these title wins along with the old guard.
-PV Sindhu’s maiden World Championship gold: In 2019, Sindhu became the first Indian to win the World Championship in badminton, defeating Nozomi Okuhara of Japan.
-Team India takes down heavyweights at Thomas Cup: During the Thomas Cup 2022, Team India took down 14-time champions Indonesia in the final by 3-0 to seal the prestigious team championship.
-Neeraj takes home World Championship gold: After Neeraj’s Paris Olympics gold, the public interest in athletics, particularly javelin throw, skyrocketed. So did Neeraj’s consistency as he occupied the podium on every competition. His peak came in the World Championships at Budapest in 2023, when an 88.17m earned him the privilege of becoming India’s first-ever world champion in any athletics discipline.
-‘Lehra Do’ at Paralympics: After a record-high medal tally of 19 medals at Tokyo 2020 Paralympics, including five golds, the Indian contingent took the medal count to record-breaking 29 at the next event at Paris in 2024, including seven golds, nine silver and 13 bronze medals. The popular ‘Lehra Do’ track could be heard every day as the para-athletes made their country proud. (ANI)
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