Indian hockey continues to make waves, post success at the Paris 2024 Olympics. Winning two back-to-back bronze medals in Tokyo and Paris has made people sit up and take notice. If you thought winning the bronze medal at the Yves Manoir Stadium in Paris against Spain on August 8 would mean the players would ease off, quite the opposite has happened. On return to India, there were felicitation functions and much of the focus was on a grand farewell for goalkeeper PR Sreejesh.
What was refreshing, the team got a short break, and most key players, skipper Harmanpreet Singh included, got back to training under coach Craig Fulton at the SAI Centre on the outskirts of Bengaluru. One thing is certain, Indian hockey is dead serious about sustaining the momentum and not basking in glory from Paris. Such is the nature of certain sporting disciplines today, living on glory alone will not help. The players and teams have to return to the training and competition mode.
The Asian Champions Trophy is peaking at the Moqi hockey training base in Hulunbuir, China. On Saturday, India had to fight hard to overcome Pakistan 2-1 to keep the winning sequence intact. The narrow win is a clear indicator, Pakistan are pretty serious about rebuilding their side under coach Tahir Zaman. Past results of India versus Pakistan produced scores which showed Pakistan in poor light. They are making a fresh beginning and it is important for Asian hockey.
Way back in 2014, after the Asian Games final in Incheon, South Korea, when India won gold and made the cut for the 2016 Olympics in Rio, Shahnaz Sheikh, then Pakistan coach, was weeping. He had said that unless India and Pakistan support each other and play more hockey, the standard of Pakistan would never improve. Indeed, the former Asian giants would produce classical hockey in a 5-3-2-1 formation. That style is now extinct and India have embraced modern hockey, where there is less room for individual flair and ball possession. Now, the emphasis is on team play and each player has his role caved out.
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If one were to make a comparison between India’s campaign at the Tokyo Olympics and Paris 2024 Olympics, there is a big difference. Definitely, in Paris, India looked much stronger. To compare the coaching styles of Graham Reid, who handled the Indian team in Tokyo and Craig Fulton, current coach, makes an interesting study. Fulton has allowed the players to perform their roles without trying to change too much. And the response from the players has been very encouraging.
There have been horror stories in the past, where Indian superstars with bloated egos complained about how the foreign coaches were making them do different things. No, now they don’t. The players have understood, from the sidelines, the coach commands and the players have to execute plans on the field, in all the four quarters. Look at the way someone like Harmanpreet Singh plays and leads India. This is thorough commitment, a man dedicated and performing for the team putting his heart and soul into play. If he was outstanding in the Paris Olympics campaign, Harmanpreet has not eased off. As he said ahead of the Asian Champions Trophy semi-final against South Korea today, “we had very little rest or training after the Olympics campaign and am happy with how the team is performing.” Harmanpreet has now scored 201 goals for India, and looks good for more. As a penalty corner expert, he is a class act.
What also has gone almost unnoticed is how the Indian team has slipped into winning mode, even without Sreejesh. This writer spoke to the star goalkeeper on return from Paris and the response from Sreejesh was classic. “The game will go on and the next goalkeeper will deliver, no worries,” said Sreejesh. Watching new goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathak under the bar, one feels he is ready to absorb pressure and deliver. When Sreejesh was playing, the focus was entirely on him. Perhaps, a few missed out that Pathak as an understudy was also performing and learning. Even if he was playing certain matches in brief spells and Sreejesh had been pulled out, it had gone unnoticed. It’s good news Pathak has stepped up, though the ideal situation would be an understudy for Pathak is also groomed soon.
What happens in the Asian Champions Trophy is just one part. The sheer volume of hockey India will be playing means a pool of players comprising seniors and juniors has to be meshed. Hockey India has promised the return of the domestic league at home, and international assignments will also be tight. If there is a system in place now in Indian hockey, that’s heartening. “Have faith,” is the message from Harmanpreet and his teammates.
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