India, helmed by new head coach Harendra Singh, will take on arch-rivals Pakistan in the Champions Trophy opener on Saturday.
After the no-medal show in the Commonwealth Games at Gold Coast – the team’s last tournament – there’s pressure on Harendra and his boys to finish at the podium in the six-team (including five of the top six in the world rankings) tournament that will be held in Breda, Netherlands.
The men in blue had their best-ever result in the last edition of the tournament in 2016, where they finished runners-up to the mighty Australians. Despite the result – a 1-3 defeat in the penalty shootouts – they were praised for playing well in the tournament and for holding off Australia in the final.
But quite a few things have changed for the men’s hockey team ever since.
Because of the fourth place finish in the Commonwealth Games and the subsequent change of coach, India’s performance at the last edition of the Champions Trophy is hard to predict.
Since the 2016 South Asian Games, India haven’t lost to Pakistan. They have met on eight occasions ever since and India have won seven times. But the one match they drew – in the Commonwealth Games – might irk them. For, they conceded a late goal (something they’d been accused of doing in the past) to begin the tournament with a draw.
India-Pakistan matches since 2016 SAG
| TOURNAMENT | RESULT |
|---|---|
| Sultan Azlan Shah Cup | 5-1 (India) |
| Asian Hockey Champions Trophy | 3-2 (India) |
| Asian Hockey Champions Trophy | 3-2 (India) |
| FIH Hockey World League | 7-1 (India) |
| FIH Hockey World League | 6-1 (India) |
| Hockey Asia Cup | 3-1 (India) |
| Hockey Asia Cup | 4-0 (India) |
| Commonwealth Games | 2-2 (draw) |
The result per se wasn’t the reason why India finished without a medal at the Commonwealth Games but the slip-ups in crucial moments of a match (in defence and in attack) led to the team’s undoing.
And, the match against Pakistan would carry the weight of history as well. But both coach Harendra and captain PR Sreejesh underplayed that. They concurred that “the match against Pakistan is just another game.”
India’s finishing and conversion rates of penalty corners have been ordinary as well in their last two major tournaments. In most of their matches at Gold Coast, India had penetrated the attacking circle more often than their opponents but failed to score goals.
This was an area that Harendra said that he’d been working on for the last two months in the national camp in Bengaluru.
But the coach, ahead of the tournament-opener, also said the defensive lapses should be avoided as well. “There is no doubt we need to be smart in our defence, not allow easy penetration into the striking circle. We must avoid conceding PCs against Pakistan or Argentina who we play in the second match,” he said.
The tournament will also mark the return of veteran Sardar Singh, who is just two matches away from reaching the milestone of 300 international appearances for India.
“Sardar is an immensely experienced midfielder. His presence in the midfield will give a lot of motivation to others. He has the ability to give long, skilful passes,” former captain Manpreet had said before leaving for the Champions Trophy.
India’s forward line will see two changes, with Akashdeep Singh and Sumit Kumar (Jr) being rested for the tournament. Simranjeet Singh and Lalit Kumar Upadhyay have replaced them in the squad.
Squad
Goalkeepers: PR Sreejesh (C), Krishan Bahadur Pathak
Defenders: Harmanpreet Singh, Varun Kumar, Surender Kumar, Jarmanpreet Singh, Birendra Lakra, Amit Rohidas.
Midfielders: Manpreet Singh, Chinglensana Singh Kangujam (VC), Sardar Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad.
Forwards: SV Sunil, Ramandeep Singh, Mandeep Singh, Simranjeet Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Dilpreet Singh.