From ICC T20 World Cups to Asian Games in Nagoya, big year for Indian sports

The dawn of a New Year brings more than a ray of hope for a sporting nation, which India is developing into. For those who still feel India is still not a sporting nation, it is a wrong notion. There have been changes. From being mere participants in mega events like the Asian Games and the Olympics a few decades back, the Indian athletes, today, are capable of winning medals.

Then again, for those who say India is a cricket-obsessed nation, it is not a 100 per cent true. Maybe, cricket in India meant only the men doing well. The narrative has changed, and the women stand up to be counted as well. Proof of it was Harmanpreet Kaur and her bunch winning the ICC ODI World Cup last year in Navi Mumbai.

Past is past, sports is about present and what results will be produced this year, as well as slipping into the next Olympics cycle, culminating in 2028 in Los Angeles. The start of the year is itself rich for cricket, though, to think, India will be favourites as hosts to retain the title in the ICC T20 World Cup is wrong. This is, indeed, one of the most unpredictable formats. What happened in the last edition with Rohit Sharma as captain was magic in the West Indies. Today, we have a captain in Suryakumar Yadav who is himself struggling like a fish out of water Can he score runs again and be counted as a leader, we will know from February 7 March 8, 2026.

A few months hence, the women will also be competing in the ICC T20 World Cup in England. One cannot get swayed by results India achieved recently in the T20 internationals against Sri Lanka. Playing in England will be an altogether different challenge. Yet, given the depth Indian women’s cricket has today, there is hope.

Frankly speaking, for the second time, there will be less excitement about India competing in the watered-down Commonwealth Games to be held in Glasgow this July. It is a condensed Games, almost being held apologetically, with just 10 disciplines. For those who were pleased India did reasonably well last time when Birmingham was the host in 2022, this is also just an imitation.

The big hopes will be from the Asian Games to be hosted by Aichi-Nagoya in Japan this September. When one talks of a multi-discipline Games today and India’s medal prospects, it includes Able-bodied athletes as well as the Para athletes. The Indians Para athletes have worked assiduously and their efforts plus medals count a lot.

In many ways, the Asian Games is important for India as it will offer a peep into the form and fresh faces which can serve notice of their potential. Hockey offers qualifying berths for the LA Olympics and nothing less than a gold will suffice. Indeed, the men’s team is capable of doing well but the women’s team has been struggling. Call it poor management by Hockey India or useless coaches who have played politics, Indian women’s hockey has been run into the ground by a coach like Harendra Singh. That he exited is best news for India. Who takes over and when is intrigue.

When one talks of the Asian Games, the standards are rising. It may not be comparable with the Summer Olympics, but if you look at a sport like badminton, the field is tough. PV Sindhu is retuning from an injury break, but Indian badminton needs more champions. All eyes will be on Lakshya Sen as well.

The men and women who run sport in the country includes National Sports Federations, the Sports Ministry and the Sports Authority of India. There are qualification criteria set, but finally, it becomes like let every athlete fly out. If that happens with Indian football as well, that would be ridiculous for the Asian Games.

Today, India has enough athletes who can win medals in different sporting disciplines. Take shooting, the depth is massive, even though in weightlifting, there is just one Mirabai Chanu. Can Vinesh Phogat, who has come out of retirement bounce back? Will wrestlers, boxers and athletes competing in a whole gamut of disciplines shine in Nagoya will be watched with interest.

In addition, there are also World Cups in many sporting disciplines. The winter break is over for Indian athletes. From January 1, most athletes will be already programming themselves. Amidst all this, what one needs to be careful of is dope cheats. India, sadly, is on the top of the dope cheat list put out by WADA. Testing will increase and each medal hopeful will be checked. But then, a medal at any cost is not what India wants. Be fair, be clean and win. That has to be instilled in athletes from a young age. Producing clean champions has to be the goal.