India vs Australia in Hockey: A Fierce Rivalry Through the Years

As a sports enthusiast, you might love watching the rivalry between India and Pakistan. But what if I tell you there is another fierce competitor of India, against whom they have been playing high-stakes matches in hockey. Yes, the Australia-India games are some of the most underrated ones, where almost every audience misses.

Here, we’ll look at the records, matches, and highlights of Australia and India’s matches throughout the years.

Overall Head-to-Head Record

Jumping into the head-to-head records in India vs Australia matches, the ‘Men in Blue’ first played against the Aussies in a Test match at Melbourne on August 17, 1935, where they stood out as a winner with a score of 12-1.

Ever since the first match, both have played 145 matches against each other, where the dominance of Australia could be seen. Among the 145 matches, India has won only 25 matches, while Australia has won 97 matches. Similarly, 23 matches had no winners and ended in a draw.

Looking at the biggest win of Australia against India, the Aussies won the 2010 Commonwealth Games in New Delhi by a dominant score of 8-0, while the biggest record win of India against the Aussies is the Test match at Melbourne in 1935 by 12-1.

On the other hand, the total number of goals scored by India is 252, and the goals scored by Australia are 464 in total. During the last encounter between the both at the 2024 Paris Olympics, India won the game in a fascinating style with a 3-2 score.

India vs Australia in the Commonwealth Games

Through the years, hockey matches of India vs Australia in Commonwealth Games have been watched by millions of fans around the world, where Aussies have entirely dominated India in each meeting.

In the year 1998, when hockey was first included in the Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, India and Australia met in the group stage, where Australia thrashed India by 5-2, establishing them as the future competition for every team in the Commonwealth Games.

Similarly, from the year 2010 to 2022, India and Australia faced each other three times in the final of the hockey Commonwealth Games. In all three matches, Australia stood out as a dominant performer, as they handed India a loss, that too in the final stage of the tournament.

In the year 2010, the Commonwealth Games were held in New Delhi, where Australia won against India by 8-0 In the final. Similarly, in the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, the powerhouses in hockey again met in the final, and again Aussies beat India by 4-0.

Moreover, in the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, the defending champions defeated Men in Blue in a style by 7-0, fully exposing the weak Indian defensive playing style.

India vs Australia in Major Tournaments

The rivalry between the two competitive teams is not limited to the Commonwealth Games and other tournaments, but can also be seen in different major tournaments across the world, like the World Cup, the Olympics, the Champions Trophy, and others.

Whenever India and Australia face each other, a highly anticipated match is expected, and the respective teams somehow deliver the match with high intensity.

Talking about one of the most watched events in the world, the Australia vs India hockey Olympics, both teams have faced each other 12 times, among which India has won only 4 games, while Australia has won 6 matches, with 2 games going to a draw.

Similarly, in the Hockey World Cup, both have gone head-to-head in 8 matches, where Australia has dominated India with 6 wins, while India has only 1 match win in total. The remaining match concluded in a draw.

The other competitive tournament where both have played against each other is the Champions Trophy. In the Champions Trophy, a total of 17 matches have been played, among which India has won only 2 matches, while Australia has won 11 matches, and 4 matches concluded in a draw.

Lastly, the performance of Australia in the Hockey Pro League is also praiseworthy, as the Aussies have won 3 games out of 5, where 1 game was won by India and 1 concluded in a draw.