Lakshya, better pluck next time!

I watched the Paris Olympics with keen interest expecting a much better performance from India Like every patriotic Indian I felt elevated when our national anthem played as Abhinav Bindra 2008 and Neeraj Chopra 2021 stood with their respective gold medals on the podium The national anthem being played before the hockey games gives me goosebumps tooNot being a fan of largerthanlife heroic stories that focus on escapism I prefer realistic moviesLessons from the MahabharataHowever I do take lessons from our ancient scripts like the Mahabharata In it Arjuna was the most skillful warrior with all the weaponry to win a war but lacked selfbelief mental toughness and ruthlessness while fighting against his cousins the Kauravas Krishna gave him the mental training lesson on the battlefield and convinced him to fight and defeat his opponents who were siding with adharma Another brave warrior Abhimanyu mdash Arjunarsquos son mdash was not as skillful in battle craft but had the courage to fight against many warriors alone and was ultimately martyredApplying this to the Indian Olympic contingent everyone involved including the support staff should ask themselves Were they as brave as Abhimanyu courageous to take on anyone Did they train to be as skillful as Arjuna Did the coaches cover all bases and act like Krishna in preparing them to be battleready in all aspects of the sportCan everyone involved from the players the top of the Indian Olympic Association to the Sports Minister stand in front of a mirror and say that they made a honest hundred per cent effort to win a medal at this Olympics If the answer is yes then the defeat is honourable and they need to work harder next time But if the answer is no and someone manipulated their way then the sportrsquos harsh lesson of there being no shortcuts to success comes to the foreUnfortunately in our country failures receive more sympathy and todayrsquos sportspeople like politicians are smart enough to hide behind that sympathy We Indians should learn to respect those who ruthlessly pursue their goals and fight till the end Such individuals should be applauded even if they fail to win or could have won a better medal A desire and hunger instead of a wish makes a true championAlso ReadVinesh Phogat and the heavy price of a 100gram disqualificationCalling for accountabilityI saw the media briefing of the legendary Prakash Padukone and agree with his views in the wake of lacklustre performance by Indiarsquos shuttlers Prakash took a tough stance saying it was high time the players learned to withstand pressure take responsibility and deliver results as they were receiving significant support from everyone including the governmentI watched the talented Lakshya Sen play Viktor Axelsen semifinal where he should have been ruthless but ultimately lost to a more ruthless competitor who went on to win gold Sen then suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Lee Zii Jia bronzemedal match despite being in an advantageous position at the start in both games as his opponents showed more hunger to winSen seemed like the next badminton hero who could take the game forward inspiring many young shuttlers just like Sunil Gavaskar or Kapil Dev did for cricket Prakashrsquos comments may have upset those who are content with mediocre performances from a player who has the ability to win gold Sometimes a rap on the knuckles at the right time is required and if a mirror is shown by a legend it should be taken as constructive criticism Those who accept constructive criticism prosper Lakshya better pluck next time pleaseAlso ReadVinesh is a champion no matter what Phogats advocate ahead of CAS verdictI messaged Prakash telling him that hersquos doing a fantastic job and understood that he could feel helpless sitting on the sidelinesIrsquom an ardent hockey fan and before I took up cricket I watched many matches at the Bombay Hockey Association stadium inspired by my uncle Harcharan Singh Boparai who was a member of the 1975 World Cupwinning team I loved the way our boys played in Paris against all odds Credit for the revival of Indian hockey must also go to former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Odisha government sponsors the India hockey team He is softspoken keeps a low profile and has never sought credit Hats off to you sirDetermined to do betterOur medalwinners were all humble in their success and seem hungry to better their performances next time Manu Bhaker who won two bronze medals showed maturity beyond her age in her interactions with the media And our super athlete the darling of India Neeraj Chopra won a silver medal but is determined to better his performance Neerajrsquos mother showed that she has a heart of gold when she said that even the gold medalwinner Pakistanrsquos Arshad Nadeem is also like her son It reflects the upbringing of our javelin superstarIndiarsquos 1983 cricket World Cupwinning player also excelled in badminton amp hockey