Dhanraj Pillay's onfield brilliance and his histrionics off it dominated the year as the Indian men's hockey team struggled to dish out their best in international meets.
India failed to manage a top-place finish in even a single major tournament throughout the year though they won the silver medal in the Asian Games in Busan.
The major setback for the team came in the prestigious World Cup held in Kuala Lumpur, where it faltered to finish tenth. The poor performance resulted in the unceremonious exit of the chief coach Cedric D'Souza.
The unheralded women's team saw a fluctuation of fortunes throughout the year.
Playing with determination and purpose, the eves surprised everyone by winning the gold medal in the Commonwealth Games at Manchester before coming unstuck at the Busan Asian Games, finishing last among the four participating nations.
The 35-year old Pillay, who was the player of the tournament in the Champions Trophy in Cologne, Germany and was also nominated for the FIH player of the year award, was in the news for all the wrong reasons as well.
Pillay abused and pushed the umpires during the final of the Nehru Cup hockey tournament in New Delhi in November. Playing for Indian Airlines against Punjab Police in the final, the star player pushed and threatened the umpires after being unhappy with a decision.
The player from Maharashtra, also, got into trouble for blaming his national team-mates from Punjab for not helping him to play upto his potential during the Champions Trophy even though India finished fourth and he was adjudged the best player.
India's two wins against Pakistan -- in Champions Trophy and in the Asian Games -- endeared the team to millions of fans back home even though it failed to win the top prize in either of the tournaments.
The side's biggest disappointment came during the World Cup in Kuala Lumpur in February-March during which India lost most of their matches to finish even behind teams considered to be minnows on the international circuit.
Though India won against Cuba and Poland in the league encounters and drew against Japan, they lost four matches, against South Korea, Malaysia, England and Australia for a 10th place finish in the 16-team competition.
The performance in the World Cup irked the union government so much so that the then Sports Minister Uma Bharati directed her ministry to look into the side's debacle.
"India's showing in the World Cup has left a lot to be desired. I have always maintained that every authority has to be accountable. I can assure you that - haathi ki galti ke liye chuhe ko saza nahin milegi," she had said.
India, however, bounced back to their winning ways in the next major tournament, emerging runners-up in the four-nation event held in Adelaide and Melbourne in May-June. India beat Malaysia and South Korea in the league encounters before receiving a 0-6 thrashing in the final against Australia.
In the next tournament, India's preparation for the Champions Trophy suffered a big jolt when they failed to win even a single match in the Rabobank four-nation hockey meet in Amstelveen, Netherlands in August. They were comprehensively beaten by the hosts and Australia and held by South Korea for a 2-2 draw to finish at the bottom of the table.
In the August-September Champions Trophy, though India managed a fourth-place finish, they won one and lost one against arch-rivals Pakistan in what were billed as the matches of the tournament.