A few days ago, when the grandstands cast shadows on the pitch and the wind was blowing, the Team India– hockey team walked about 150 meters. from their accommodation to the center of the pitch at Birsa Munda Stadium and took their seats. near the center circle. “It’s dark, there’s nobody but us.” India coach Graham Reid set the stage. For about an hour he led a series of Nomination Talks: Veterans Reminisce on Past World Championship Experiences; new faces share their dreams. Everyone shares what they’ve been through as a group heading into the Hockey World Cup where India opens their game against Spain on Friday.
Reid leaves nothing to chance when preparing for a major tournament. On one occasion, before the Rio Olympics, he asked Australian players to sit on a bus for almost an hour to prepare for their bus going off the road. This bizarre situation is not uncommon at the Olympics.
Team India before leaving for Tokyo, where they returned with the bronze medal, after team selection, he sat with his players by the pool at the SAI campus in Bangalore and each of them shared their story. “Why we’re here, what the Olympics mean to you… it was a highlight,” Reid said. “After that meeting,” added Captain Harmanpreet Singh, “the bond grew stronger. You could see it in training – people were sliding, pushing, working hard… at a very high intensity. “Mazaaa raha tha.” The coach and captain hope this intimate session in Rourkela will have a similar impact.
Uncertainty, Doubtful things
Team India may be Olympic medallists, but that aura has vanished in India since they stepped off the podium in Tokyo. Before leaving for Rourkela, the home team was of course excited about the World Cup, but also unsure. After ‘s first goal was conceded, there is a hint of
It is very clear that India have drawn two games and won one game against England. This shows that despite conceding goals, they can score as many goals or one more than their opponents. However, this is a risky philosophy.
The reasons for a lost defense are many. Experimenting with a different structure and pressure system, poor fitness in some cases (mainly due to protracted Olympic medal celebrations), and Reid testing different players – 31, to be precise. Reid doesn’t want to try different players as an excuse. “But we’re probably there,” he said. “For a team like Australia, it doesn’t really matter. Their depth is really good. It makes you want to try to go there. There’s no difference in performance. (But) When you get someone new, it takes a long time (to settle), about 30 strangers. “The focus was on marking and duel positioning Thursday, at the last practice session before the opening of the World Cup, the spotlight was on the men’s duel by marking and placement within the letter ‘D ‘”. Harmanpreet said
The team was focused on other aspects
Controlling the counter-attack and playing with one player down on the pitch, perhaps due to a poor disciplinary record. In some of these areas, India will be different from India Inspired by the recent Australian tour, but although “They played well.”, the team conceded 25 goals in five games. On the other hand, they have each scored four goals in four games out of five. Once again underscores the same trend: while the defense looks open, the offense remains solid.
In Tokyo, it was the little things that put India on the podium. As a result, India will go to the Hockey World Cup for the first time in decades with two welcome recruits: Olympic medallists and under the same coach. The first highlights the rise of the country’s world position in ice hockey and the second highlights one of the reasons that led to its stability.
_______________________________________________________________________________
