ROURKELA: The moment the umpire blew his whistle, pointing both his index fingers towards the goal, the 10,000-strong crowd erupted in excitement at the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium.
The enthusiasm was for one sole reason - Soorma Hockey Club had been awarded a penalty corner (PC), meaning Harmanpreet Singh would be taking the drag-flick.
The crowd became louder as Harmanpreet Singh, who turns 29 on Monday, laid his sharp eyes on the pusher's stick, bending his back at the top of the D. In came the ball, swish went the flick and a lot of 'oohs!' as he missed the chance.
The three-time FIH Player of the Year is clearly the biggest name in Indian hockey today, which was missing a star-like figure.
With Harmanpreet emerging as the pre-eminent face of Indian hockey, that position is no longer vacant with thousands staying back after the match to get a glimpse of the two-time Olympic bronze medallist.
On a chilly Thursday evening, Harmanpreet was running a temperature, had cough and cold but still turned out for the Hockey India League (HIL) contest against UP Rudras after popping a couple of pills.
It is the same devotion to the sport that made him the sixth hockey player to be chosen for India's highest sports honour, Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna award, after Dhanraj Pillay, Sardar Singh, Rani Rampal, Manpreet Singh and PR Sreejesh.
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