Stepping into 2019: India all set to Conquer!

The ball has already started rolling for the Indian Sports as we step into 2019. Here’s a quick snapshot of all that’s on the radar:

– Cricket

Well, not so surprisingly, our favourite sport is on a huge high in the aftermath of the MCG Test win. Not just that, chances are that the dream of an overseas series win will be fulfilled in Sydney.

In white ball cricket, India is a force to reckon with and will start the 50-over World Cup in England in summer as one of the favourites along with the hosts. The core is in place and Virat Kohli has multiple options up his sleeve.

Interestingly, the players will have to play it smart & sneak some time out to rest and dominate. It’s crucial to have the players’ workloads balanced & treat the fast bowlers with some much-needed rest during the gruelling IPL, so as to be match-ready for the first warm-up game of the World Cup.

– Shooting

Honestly, we must give due credit to Shooting as it has come a long way since the Rio debacle. Looking at the 2018 Youth Olympics, it’s safe to claim that the future looks golden. India now boasts of multiple world champions in the age group of 15-18 with an added advantage of being well protected by mentors like Jaspal Rana, Suma Shirur and Joydeep Karmakar giving them enough reasons to deliver in Tokyo.

Whether it’s Manu Bhaker, Heena Sidhu, Apurvi Chandela, Mehuli Ghosh, Anjum Moudgil, Saurabh Chaudhary, Jitu Rai, Gagan Narang, Deepak Kumar and Ravi Kumar, India has a crop, which can easily be labelled the golden generation of Indian shooting.

– Badminton

The year had been quite mediocre when it comes to badminton, except for the year-end championships in China that left some sparks. The highlight however shall be PV Sindhu breaking through the finals jinx & reaching to a stage where she can rightfully dominate her sport.

It’ll be pivotal to have Saina come back back stronger and for Sameer Verma to take his game a few notches up. Kidambi Srikkanth and HS Prannoy, who both had an underwhelming year, are expected to step up again and with Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty shaping up really well in doubles, multiple medals aren’t a pipedream.

– Boxing

The 6th time world champion, the evergreen Mary Kom continues to make us proud. Adding to it is Vikas Krishan & the brilliant Amit Phangal shaping up well for the 2019.

– Wrestling

Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat are at par with the world’s best and if Bajrang can do what he did at the Asian games, he can emulate Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt at Olympic stage. Neeraj Chopra is already in the world’s top ten and Tejinder Pal Toor and Hima Das have both shown serious improvement.

– Tables Tennis & Fencing

There’s immense potential lying ahead. With Manika Batra doing the same in Ta b l e Tennis a n d Bhavani Devi in Fencing, I n d i a ’ s dream of becoming a multi-sporting nation seems closer than ever.

– Hockey

The narrow loss to the Dutch in the World Cup notwithstanding, hockey team under Harendra Singh is on an upward curve and likely to qualify for the 2020 Olympics. The women’s team is also starting to look good to make it to Tokyo.

– Football

After a span of seven long years the Indian Football team is finally going to participate in the AFC Asian Cup where they have been scheduled alongside hosts UAE, Bahrain and Thailand.

A footballing extravaganza like the Asian Cup demands a lot of challenges which include top quality opposition and consistent pressure of performing. But the most important among them is the test of a team’s consistency and fitness in such a tournament.

– Basketball

The National Basketball Association (NBA) announced that the Indiana Pacers and Sacramento Kings will play in two preseason games in Mumbai in 2019, marking the first games the NBA has played in India and the first games staged in the country by a North American sports league.

Overall this looks beyond exciting ! Ohh well actually that’d be an understatement. This looks BIG!

India too keen to take on the world, is all set to create a magnificent year in the evolving of sports.