Simranjeet Singh has this uncanny knack of delivering on the big stage. When others fail under pressure, the 26-year-old hockey player makes it count when it matters the most.
It was Simranjeet’s winning goal that handed India the 2016 Junior World Cup crown for the first time in 15 years. The striker scored a brace in India’s opening victory in the 2018 World Cup. And it was he again who famously scored a brace, including the winning goal, in the historic Olympic bronze medal match against Germany in Tokyo.
“Whenever India’s hockey success at #Tokyo2020 is remembered, the contribution of Simranjeet Singh will figure prominently in such discussions,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi had tweeted in August 2021 after India ended a 41-year wait for an Olympic hockey medal.
Simranjeet, who also plays as an attacking midfielder, has proved himself time and again, cashing in on excellent peripheral vision and his ability to pounce on a free ball and create chances.
Yet, he was out of the team for nearly two years, following the success in Tokyo.
“The last two years were hampered by back-to-back injuries. During the camp after the Olympics, I fell and injured my knee. I had two options: get it operated or undergo rehabilitation. The doctors recommended the latter, which took 4-5 months. Then it took another 4-5 months to regain game fitness,” said the player, who hails from Majhola in Pilibhit district of Uttar Pradesh.
The injury sidelined the 26-year-old for the 2021 Asian Champions Trophy and the 2021-22 Pro League. After putting in hours, in rehab and training, Simranjeet was selected for the Asia Cup in May 2022, but he injured his hamstring after playing one match.
It took him another month to recover but by then he was not in the then chief coach Graham Reid’s radar, who had started planning for the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
“I practiced well and was getting better day-by-day, camp-by-camp but perhaps the coach did not want to risk a player returning from successive injuries,” said Simranjeet, who has 55 caps for India.
To make matters worse, Simranjeet was also dropped from the 33 core probables, a group from which the Indian team is selected. He missed Pro League matches and the tour of Australia, but what hurt him most was non-selection for the 2023 World Cup in Odisha.
“I was expecting a call-up before the World Cup, that I’ll get a chance to play a second World Cup at home. Unfortunately, my name wasn’t on the list. The coach said I was not up to the mark and that the selectors didn’t want me. Any player will find it difficult when he’s told that. But he also said I will get a second chance and asked me to keep getting better, give attention to fitness, give my best, and keep following the schedule.
“It was a very difficult period for me but the decision was made. It was the first time I was challenged this way. It was tough telling my family that I am not in the core group. But I am thankful to God he gave this willpower. My family and team members also helped me face the situation.”
Simranjeet had two choices: fret over the omission or work on crossing the hurdle. He chose the latter.
He went back to the domestic circuit and immediately made an impression, taking Indian Oil Corporation to the final of the Surjit Hockey Tournament in Jalandhar in November 2022. The next month he helped the team win the Lal Bahadur Shastri Hockey Tournament in New Delhi, following it up with another final appearance for Petroleum Sports Promotion Board in the inter-department nationals. He worked on basics and shooting skills, getting more involved in penalty corners too.
The national selectors saw the improvements and recalled him into the core group on March 31. “It felt as if the extra weight was lifted off my shoulders. For me it was a challenge to make myself fit. I was happy the coaches trusted me and gave me another chance,” Simranjeet, a product of the famous Surjit Singh Hockey Academy, Jalandhar said.
He also found solace in spending time with his wife — he got married in October 2021 — and seven-month-old son Bilawal. “Perhaps it was God’s way. My wife was due when I was not in the squad. They needed me. It was a blessing in disguise.”
Back in the squad under new chief coach Craig Fulton, he shone in the two Pro League matches in Eindhoven last week. He didn’t score but was instrumental in India winning both matches against 2016 Olympic champions Argentina.