India's poor hockey World Cup performance was made to look bad by Graham Reid.

 Reid assisted India in achieving a podium finish in the Olympics, but the administration chose to focus on Reid rather of dealing with the underlying problems, which range from the absence of a grassroots programme to the absence of a professional league.

After India's humiliating World Cup loss and the day after Germany were declared champions, Hockey India announced on Monday that coach Reid had resigned.

Graham Reid arrived in India out of worry that he would "lose his job in three months." Instead, he held the position of head coach for a longer period of time than any of his predecessors. The Australian also brought order to the perpetually chaotic world of Indian hockey over these four years, taught the national song and sung it with passion, and led the team to unparalleled heights, including a return to the Olympic podium after forty years.

After India's humiliating World Cup loss and the day after Germany were declared champions, Hockey India announced on Monday that coach Reid had resigned. The federation declined to say whether any attempts were made to persuade the coach, who earned India's bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

Or whether Reid was similarly given the freedom to go as Robin Arkell, the former strength and conditioning coach who is now a crucial member of Germany's coaching staff and the world champions.

It is characteristic of Indian hockey that the administration has made the coach the scapegoat after just one defeat rather than addressing the more fundamental problems, such as the absence of a grassroots programme and a professional league.

During their classification match at the 2023 Men's FIH Hockey World Cup, Indian and South African players compete for the ball in Rourkela on Saturday, January 28, 2023. India triumphed 5-2 in the game.

Reid led the national team to the Olympic podium in Tokyo despite these difficulties and in what will undoubtedly be remembered as his greatest achievement to Indian hockey.

There are doctors available online in a small mountain town in Tamil Nadu.

Reid had no illusions that Covid played a role in his decision to stay on as coach for four years when the typical tenure of an Indian coach is just under a year.

He received a longer rope than the previous coaches because there were less matches due to the pandemic and the ensuing lockdown, which reduced competition.

During this time, the Australian, who has a pacemaker implanted in his heart since 1996, stabilised Indian hockey both on and off the field. Reid was given the time and space to make his mark on the team due to the stability of the playing group as well.

India has developed into a fine counterattacking unit that was also patient on the ball when the situation called for it. Instead of forcing entry, the team learned to hold possession, pass the ball around, and wait for gaps to open up—a skill they weren't particularly good at before the World Cup for reasons that are beyond comprehension.

However, despite winning an Olympic medal, the team was always improving. Reid was aware of it.

His goal after the Olympics was to get better at shooting within the circle. According to statistics, India's xG (expected goals), to use a football word, were consistently rather high although that most often did not show up in the scorelines.

This peculiarity, the team's press (using a two-third court press instead of the typical full-court or half-court press India deployed), and the players' off-the-ball running were all things that needed to be fixed over the past year.

The great Australian coach Ric Charlesworth also cited India's inability to defeat New Zealand in the playoff game to advance to the quarterfinals as a result of their mobility off the ball.

Charlesworth, who recommended Reid for the position in 2019, had noted, using the example of a pass by Simon Child of New Zealand, "... Nilakanta (Sharma) wasn't sharp enough to get near. It becomes more difficult for Child to pass the ball if he approaches closer. Never just one thing. There are several things involved. Since Harmanpreet wasn't (sharp), the ball was fired beyond him. When the ball is touched, it rolls over the sideline rather than toward someone who is positioned in front of the goal.

This stage of Reid's project is still unfinished since he feels that it is "now time to move aside and pass over the reigns to the next management." And since it will be the inevitable next step in the team's development, it is safe to assume that his replacement, who won't have much time to ease into the difficult post, will also be prioritising it.

India has games virtually every two months this year, including trips to England and the Netherlands, but everything the team does will be focused on taking home the gold at the Asian Games.

Teams will have the first opportunity to secure an Olympic berth at the multi-discipline competition, which will take place in September–October 2023 due to the pandemic. India's journey to the Asian Games final will be trickier than anticipated due to South Korea's resurgence, Malaysia's sheer tenacity, and Japan's banana skin team. And let's not forget Pakistan, who, despite their difficulties, are always in the mix.