Ashok Kumar has always spoken about how tough it has been for him to live up to the reputation of his hockey wizard father, Dhyan Chand. So to compare that legendary figure to another man must be tougher. But he has no hesitation in admitting that while his father gained his reputation in pre-independent India, in the post-independence era, there is no greater Indian hockey player than Balbir Singh Sr, 96, who passed away in Chandigarh on Monday.

"Balbirji always wanted to emulate Babuji [Dhyan Chand]. Be it his hockey skills or discipline and leadership traits that he derived from the army. And by winning three Olympic gold medals [1948, 1952, 1956], just like Babuji [1928, 1932, 1936], he did justice to his hero. Balbirji went on to be not just the perfect centreforward like Babuji, but also the perfect captain and motivator like him. Babuji started India's pre-independence hockey revolution but Balbirji kept India's flag flying high post-independence. I believe he is the Dhyan Chand of independent India," Ashok Kumar, 69, told mid-day on Monday from New Delhi.