Sardar Singh may not have won an Olympic medal, like many of his peers, yet he commands equal respect in Indian hockey. True to his name 'Sardar', which means leader, the icon holds the distinction of being the youngest player to captain India at 21 in the 2008 edition of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup. And in the years since, he has gone on to groom many players as captain, coach and mentor.
"When I announced my retirement, I couldn't watch international matches for a long time. The feeling of being on the ground, wearing the national colours for 12-15 years, and suddenly being on the different side takes time to sink in. Slowly, you realise that it's not just you, but every player undergoes the same journey," he told Moneycontrol in an exclusive interaction.
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It's been almost eight years since Sardar hung up his boots and currently serves as a mentor at the Soorma Hockey Club, one of the eight teams in the Hockey India League (HIL). He has served as the coach of the India A, U-17 and U-18 units apart from his stint in the same capacity with Soorma last season.
Reflecting further on the transition, he said: "I would say this is a new challenge and has been a tremendous learning experience. As players, you can control things on the ground, but in this role, it depends on how you bind the team together.
"At HIL, we get a camp of a month or a month and a half, the best players from the world take part, and they already know how to perform. My job is to individually speak with everyone and get the best result from them in a limited time."
When asked to pick his favourite from the current national team, Sardar emphasised collective brilliance rather than the individuals. However, he did take three names. "If you want to win a tournament in modern hockey, all 16-18-20 members of the squad are equally important. If all of them perform at least 90 per cent, then only you can win it. If we expect that only two or three players can help you win the tournament, then at most they will help you win a match or two.
"And yes, if we talk about individuals, currently, Harmanpreet does have the ability to score in a do-or-die situation. Sukhjeet Singh is good in the forward line, and Hardik Singh, who plays in the midfield, is also good.
"The first line of defence begins from the forward line, and they are doing well in winning the ball back whenever they lose possession. The way these guys have been tackling it's proper, the sticks are on the ground, no one is jumping or committing any foul. It keeps the opponent under pressure," he said.
Soorma has appointed Belgian Olympian Philippe Goldberg as the new coach for the upcoming HIL season. When asked about the preparations, Sardar said: "There has been communication with the new coaches on strategies. We'll also sit with our players and see what suits them the most."
"Many of our players, both seniors and juniors, are playing for India at the moment," he added.
