August 29, commemorated as National Sports Day in India, is the birth anniversary of the greatest field hockey player to have ever stepped on a ground, Major Dhyan Chand. Chand was the key player, responsible for Indian Hockey team’s dominance in the Field Hockey Olympics in the 1920s and 1930s. Chand was revered for his almost superhuman control of the ball and extraordinary ability to score goals, which led to him being called “The Hockey Wizard”. He helped the Indian team earn three Olympic gold medals (1928, 1932, and 1936).  

He retired from field hockey in 1948 after amassing an indomitable legacy. According to his autobiography ‘Goal’, he scored 570 goals in 185 matches and has scored over 1,000 goals in domestic and international matches, the highest by any hockey player ever. In 2021, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, the highest civilian award for sports excellence in India, was renamed to Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. It is awarded to exceptional sports personalities on August 29 every year.

Fanatic of the game

Dhyan Chand joined the Army at the age of 16 following which he started playing hockey. Before this, he had not shown any particular interest in sports. However, Chand reportedly used to rigorously practice his hockey skills in the army. He famously used to practice in night at a railway line where his regiment was stationed. His practice sessions under the moonlight were seen by his fellow players, who then put ‘Chand’ after his name (translates to moon in Hindi and Urdu). He was originally named Dhyan Singh. He was such a fanatic for hockey that he used to cut a hockey shaped stick from a tree to practice his skills. 

Dazzling performance on the International Stage 

Dhyan Chand was the highest goal scorer in 1928 Olympic games in Amsterdam. He scored a whopping 14 goals prompting a local newspaper to report, “It was not hockey but magic, and Dhyan Chand is a magician of hockey.” 

The Indian Hockey team had secured a dominating 24-1 victory over USA in the 1932 Olympic finals. Dhyan Chand scored 8 goals while his brother Roop Singh scored 10 goals. 

Such was Chand’s mastery over the ball that following the 1928 Amsterdam Olympics, the Netherland authorities cracked open his hockey stick to check whether there were any magnets inside, however none were found. 

Impressive performance against Germany in Berlin

A media report at the time stated that India was very nervous prior to the showdown with Germany during the 1936 Berlin Olympics, having lost to them in the practice game. Adding to the pressure was the fact that Adolf Hitler was also in attendance at the game. However, the team managed to comfortably beat the Germans 8-1. The one goal scored by Kurt Weiss was the only goal scored against India in the entire tournament. 

Following the match, Hitler was so impressed with Dhyan Chand’s skills in the game that he offered him a German Citizenship and the rank of Field Marshal in the German military. However, Chand declined the offer. 

Some more Trivia

During an international match, Dhyan Chand was unable to score a goal, so he complained about the size of the goal post to the referee. Upon inspection, it was revealed that the post’s width was lesser than international parameters. 

Dhyan Chand’s immense skill left a lasting impression on sports aficionados worldwide. The astro turf of the Indian Gymkhana in London’s Olympic Arena is named after him. BBC in its tributes to Dhyan Chand called him “the field hockey equivalent of Muhammad Ali”.  

He was the Guest of Honor at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. 

His son, Ashok Kumar, is also a retired field hockey player and was part of the India team which defeated Pakistan at the 1975 Hockey World Cup in Malaysia. He hit the winning goal in the finals at Kuala Lumpur which remains India’s only Hockey World Cup triumph, as of January 2023. 

When Sir Don Bradman, widely considered the greatest cricketer of all-time, came to watch a hockey match between India and Australia at Adelaide in 1936 (which India won by a comprehensive margin with Chand leading the scoring charts), Bradman commented, “Dhyanchand scores goals just as I score runs”. 

Final Years and retirement 

Chand played his final international match in 1948. He scored more than 400 goals during his international career, a feat which remains unbeaten to this day. Following his retirement, he dedicated himself to coaching and played a major part in training the 1948 and 1952 Indian Olympic teams. The Government of India awarded him the third highest (then second highest) civilian honor of Padma Bhushan in 1956. He was a senior coach post-retirement at the National Institute of Sports, Patiala. He died of liver cancer on December 3, 1979 at the All Indian Institute of Medical Sciences, aged 74.