Former India hockey captain and Olympian Viren Rasquinha has backed India’s men’s hockey team to win gold at the Asian Games 2026, but stressed that a continental title cannot paper over the areas where Indian hockey still needs improvement.
In an exclusive interview with Zee News Digital during a roundtable with selected media, Rasquinha said India would be firm favourites at the Asian Games despite their disappointing campaign at the Men’s Hockey World Cup 2026, while insisting that the team must continue to benchmark itself against the best sides in the world.
At the recently concluded World Cup, India were the only Asian side to finish inside the top 10, with Pakistan ending 11th, Japan 14th and Malaysia 16th and last. South Korea, meanwhile, did not qualify, nor did China.
The Gap Between Asian Hockey And World
Rasquinha believes the results underline the current gap between Asian hockey and the global standard.
‘See, in the Men’s Hockey World Cup 2026, which got over last month. India was the only team in the top 10. Pakistan finished 11th, Japan finished 14th, Malaysia finished 16th and last. South Korea did not even qualify. China did not even qualify in the Men’s World Cup,’ Rasquinha said.
Reflecting on the strength of Asian hockey during his playing days, he added, ‘I would say, when you compare to world standards, Asian hockey is currently really down, as opposed to when I was playing when India, Pakistan, Korea were all in the top 6 in the world.’
Olympic Qualification
With Olympic qualification at stake at the Asian Games, Rasquinha acknowledged the importance of winning gold but argued that India must view the tournament as a stepping stone towards the bigger objective.
‘But right now, I would say, even though we have had a bad World Cup, we definitely are firm favorites. To win the gold,’ he said.
However, Rasquinha stressed that India’s ambitions should extend beyond winning the continental title.
‘But I think when we talk about hockey, we should always be benchmarking to world standards. And we should not be satisfied with winning an Asian Games gold medal. For me, that is not the ultimate goal. For me, the ultimate goal for Indian men’s hockey is always to win the gold medal at the Olympics,’ he said.
Rasquinha Credits Government
Rasquinha also credited the government for its investment in Indian men’s hockey, pointing to the quality of camps, coaches, support staff and exposure available to the players.
‘I think we have to credit the government for putting massive what I would say investment in the Indian men’s hockey team, quality of the camps, quality of the national coaches, quality of the support staff, quality of exposure,’ he said.
‘Given all of that, we are the most… we are, I think I would say definitely one of the most well-funded setups in world hockey. We have the talent, we have the culture, so I think we should be setting the bar really high,’ Rasquinha added.
The former India captain believes the team must use the Asian Games to identify and address shortcomings before the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
‘Asian Games Gold is very important, Olympic qualification is on the line. But this is… should be a stepping stone, and we have to really look deeply inside as to where can we improve,’ he said.
‘Be it fitness, be it sports science, be it coaching, be it team selection, I think there are many areas where we have to ensure that we get things right, and make sure we have the best set of players preparing for the LA28 Olympics,’ Rasquinha concluded.
‘Blue Jersey’ Debate Is Outside Noise
Rasquinha also played down the discussion surrounding India returning to the blue jersey, describing the matter as an administrative issue that should not distract players from their performances on the pitch.
‘Again, this is all outside noise, administrative issue, color of the jersey. Irrespective of what color jersey we are wearing, we have to play good hockey,’ he said.
He cited the Indian women’s team as an example, noting that their performances were unaffected despite wearing an orange jersey.
‘The women also were wearing orange jersey, but they played really good hockey as a team,’ Rasquinha added.
For Rasquinha, players need to concentrate on the aspects of the game that they can control rather than administrative decisions.
‘There are certain things in life that are not in our control. And there are certain things in our life which are in our control,’ he said.
‘What color jersey the players are made to wear, they don’t decide that. Their job is when you go out there, when you step on the pitch and you represent India, you give 200% on the pitch every single match, and they should just focus on that and nothing else,’ Rasquinha added.
‘For me. Everything else is all outside noise,’ he concluded.
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