Heavy rains almost ruined the tournament. In fact, the weather was so fickle that at one moment it would be humid while the next there would be thunder, lightning and rain. At one stage, the Bommahs had to be summoned to appease the weather gods.

Having lost narrowly in the final of the last edition of the tournament, India were the favourites. Despite the rain, thunder and lightning, the hockey-loving crowds packed the stadium whenever India, and, of course, Malaysia, played. And India did not disappoint them.

The Indians beat England 2-1 in their opening match, with V J Philips scoring both goals off penalty strokes. India took on West Germany next, but rain forced the match to be abandoned after 10 minutes. The following day, India took on Australia and they were held to a 1-1 draw. A 7-0 rout of lowly Ghana gave India their second victory from three matches. But Argentina upset all calculations in the next match with a 2-1 victory. India took the lead through Harcharan Singh, but Argentina equalised through Flavio de Giscomi from a goalmouth melee, before E Barreiros scored what turned out to be the match-winner six minutes later.

Having dropped three points -- after a draw and a defeat -- India had to beat West Germany in their replayed match, which was their concluding pool match. And they did with a degree of comfort. V J Philips, Mohinder Singh and Shivaji Pawar scored to take India to the semi-finals. Germany's lone goal was scored by Fritz Schmidt.

Both India and Pakistan topped their pools. In their semi-finals, Pakistan were too good for Germany, winning 5-1 and thus exacting revenge for the 0-1 defeats in the 1972 Munich Olympics final and the 1973 World Cup bronze medal play-off.

The other semi-final was between India and Malaysia. Over 40,000 spectators turned up for the match, which was interrupted by heavy rain after only seven minutes of play and forced to be played again the next morning, March 14, before the final, which was held later in the day.

Poon Fook Loke put Malaysia ahead a little before the breather with a superb field goal. The Indians launched an all-out search for the equaliser on resumption in the second session and were rewarded after a swift move down the middle between V J Philips, Harcharan Singh and Shivaji Pawar, with Pawar scoring.

Malaysia regained the lead when captain and defender N Sri Shanmuganathan scored off a penalty corner. With eight minutes to go, it looked like curtains for India. Aslam Sher Khan was brought on for Michael Kindo. As India continued to press for the equaliser, Ashok Kumar dribbled into the circle in his inimitable style and forced a penalty corner with three minutes to go. Skipper Ajitpal Singh looked around and signalled to Sher Khan to take the hit. There was silence at the Merdeka stadium as Govinda pushed the ball. Ajitpal, at the top of the circle, stopped it dead and the burly Khan despatched it to the right of goalkeeper Khairuddin Zainal. It sounded the boards. The teams were level 2-2.

Extra time. India scored what turned out to be the match-winner. V J Philips tore down the right flank and sent across a precise shot, which Harcharan Singh trapped and sounded the boards.

The final between India and Pakistan was a thriller. It was Pakistan who took the lead, through inside right Zahid Sheikh, who finished off a pass from Islahuddin. Fullback Surjit Singh restored parity for India in the 25th minute of the second session from a penalty corner. Then Ashok Kumar scored the match-winner, pushing the ball home from a melee. The Pakistanis protested, contending that the ball had not crossed the goalline. Malaysian referee G Vijayanathan delayed his decision, but later awarded a goal. Later television replays confirmed that the ball had indeed crossed the goalline.

The team coached by Gurcharan Singh Bodhi and managed by Balbir Singh had conquered the world. It was India's first major crown since 1964, when they had won the Olympic gold at Tokyo.

West Germany beat Malaysia 4-0 to finish third.

Ties Kruize of Holland was the joint top scorer with Pakistan's Manzoor-ul Hassan, with seven goals each.

Final Positions
1.	India
2.	Pakistan
3.	West Germany
4.	Malaysia
5.	Australia
6.	England
7.	New Zealand
8.	Spain
9.	The Netherlands
10.	Poland
11.	Argentina
12.	Ghana

Indian Team:
Ajitpal Singh (captain), Leslie Fernandes, Ashok Dewan, Michael Kindo, Surjit Singh, Aslam Sher Khan, Virender Singh, Onkar Singh, Mohinder Singh, V J Philips, Harcharan Singh, Shivaji Pawar, Ashok Kumar, B P Govinda, H J S Chimni, B P Kalaiah
Coach: Gurcharan Singh Bodhi
Manager: Balbir Singh, Sr