New Delhi, Nov 9 (PTI) Indian men's hockey chief coach Craig Fulton rues the country's disappointing World Cup record but believes establishing continental supremacy is the first step towards becoming a dominant force in world hockey.
India won back-to-back Asian Games gold medals and three successive Asian Champions Trophy titles under Fulton, who took charge in May 2023, laying the foundation for a sustained push to break into the world's top four.
"When I first arrived, India had not won an Asian Games medal for years. So, you have to start somewhere. You start by qualifying for major World Cups and the Olympics. And where do you qualify for those? You qualify in Asia," the South African told PTI in an exclusive interview.
"You have to start in Asia and dominate the continent first. Then qualification becomes a mental thing. You get very good at it and know that you have a very good chance of qualifying.
"Then you can start focusing on taking on the rest of the world and breaking into the top eight, top six and top four, and trying to stand on the podium. That has always been the objective. We have done that in Asia now, and we showed in Paris that we have a good team."
India won the Asian Games gold in Hangzhou in 2022, before successfully defending their title in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, this year. They also completed a hat-trick of Asian Champions Trophy titles in Chennai (2023), China (2024) and Bihar (2026).
Fulton said the consistency of India's performances in Asia was a source of considerable satisfaction, given that the team had to build that dominance over time.
"It has been excellent because we have won back-to-back Asian Games gold medals, which had never been achieved by India before. We have also won the ACT three times in a row. We have won that tournament ever since I joined, and it was my first assignment," he said.
"We have shown our dominance in Asia three times in a row, but it has taken three-and-a-half years to achieve that. I am very proud of that."
While pleased with India's progress, Fulton admitted that the team's disappointing World Cup campaign remained a major blemish, especially after the encouraging performance at the Paris Olympics.
India defeated Australia at the Olympics for the first time in 50 years and secured a second successive bronze medal, besides pushing Germany hard in the semifinal.
"But then we had a disappointment at the World Cup. The World Cup is interesting," Fulton said.
"The motivation is very, very high at the Olympics, but it is not at the same level when it comes to the World Cup. There isn't a history of doing well at the World Cup for some strange reason, but there is a very good track record of performing well at the Asian Games leading into the Olympics."
Fulton also pointed to the demanding international calendar, with the World Cups and Asian Games scheduled just three weeks apart this year, as a factor that made preparations and performances challenging.
"We tried. I tried everything, but when the two tournaments are so close to each other, with the World Cup and the Asian Games being held back-to-back, it becomes difficult. I guess that made a difference," he said.
India bounced back from the World Cup disappointment, with both the men's and women's teams winning gold at the Asian Games and securing direct qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Early qualification has now given Fulton and his support staff an opportunity to plan more systematically for the Games, with an emphasis on testing the team against the world's leading sides.
"Fortunately, we secured early qualification for the Los Angeles Olympics. Now we can plan, build and look for a lot of good matches against the top six or eight teams in the world," he said.
"We can start planning our Olympic campaign to get back on the podium and try to change bronze into gold."
The immediate focus, however, is on widening the talent pool and giving younger players exposure to international hockey.
Fulton will take an India A team to New Zealand this weekend and is keen to use the tour to assess emerging players. A fresh squad is also expected to be assembled for the Pro League, depending on the scheduling of the Hockey India League around January.
Looking further ahead, the coach wants India to play more matches overseas in 2027, including through training camps in Europe.
"We are looking for a lot of matches. We want to play a lot of hockey outside India, so we are looking at overseas training camps where we can play teams in Europe," he said.
India are also hoping to face Australia, Argentina and South Africa in away fixtures in the Pro League during December and January 2027-28.
"All the matches will be played away from home because we will be playing the Olympics away from India," Fulton said.
(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)