Hockey and Badminton rescued India twice this year on super Sundays when cricket failed

Cricket, undoubtedly, is the most followed sport in India and the performance of the team more or less sets the tone of the country. The Men in Blue has been in excellent form recently and got the better of almost every opposition they came up against. They are expected to win every time they get onto the field. However, Hockey and Badminton, which are usually not followed when a cricket match is going on have saved the blushes for the country twice on the super Sundays this year when the cricket team stumbled on the day.

The Indian Hockey team which once ruled the world lost their way in the middle. But now they are again raising their bars in terms of performances and are winning the matches when it mattered. Similarly, Badminton has seen the meteoric rise in the country as the young stars like P.V. Sindhu and Srikanth Kidambi have hogged the limelight in this year. Also, Saina Nehwal is a living legend who is the main reason for the sport to be followed in India.

These two sports managed to keep the smile on the faces of Indian fans twice this year when the cricket team failed to do so.

October 22

India was defeated by New Zealand in the first of the 3-match ODI series by 6 wickets at Wankhede in Mumbai on Sunday which miffed their fans. It was a brilliance from Ross Taylor and Tom Latham which kept the Men in Blue at bay and scripted a famous win for their team. But the Men in Blue in the different team sport, Hockey, made sure the fans remained upbeat in the festive season.

They defeated Malaysia in the final of the Asia Cup in Dhaka by 3-2 and bagged their third title of the tournament. Also, far away from the country in Denmark, Kidambi clinched his third super series title of the year by beating Lee Hyun at the Denmark Open Super Series Premier event. He also climbed to the top of the BWF Dubai Destination Rankings much to the amusement of the die-hard fans of the sport.

June 18

This day was the biggest heart-breaking one for the cricket fans as Indian cricket team was annihilated by Pakistan in the mega final of ICC Champions Trophy. However, the men with hockey stick in their hands came to the fore yet again and swapped the result against the same opposition in the final of the FIH Hockey World League Semi final. Both the matches were played in London, and there were contrasting emotions in different sports but the fans took pride in the victory of their national game.

The super Sunday was glorified more by Srikanth Kidambi as he became the first Indian to win Men’s singles title in Indonesia. He defeated the Japanese Kazumasa Sakai in straight sets and lit up the day which helped the people forget the humiliation at the Oval at the hands of the Men in Green.