New Indian Express: Team India gears up for trip of good hope

By Vivek Phadnis

BENGALURU: The Indian team is riding high on confidence and will be hoping to improve on their 12th place showing at the 2012 London Games. The mood in the camp looks upbeat and the players seem relaxed. The players are aware of the stern tests that lie ahead.

Though the team has earned a number of medals in the past two years — the Champions Trophy silver being the latest — the Olympics is a different ball game altogether. A quarterfinal appearance in Rio seems like a fair achievement considering our Olympic record in recent times. A medal will be wishful thinking at the moment.

On the face of it, it looks like the players clearly understand what is expected of them. Captain and goalkeeper PR Sreejesh sounded optimistic during the pre-departure press conference and head coach Roelant Oltmans was realistic about the team’s goals. One factor that may be of help is the fact that Oltmans has been with the team for some time now and obviously knows the players well.

Oltmans made no secret of the fact that he is in charge and does not live in the past. “We know about the fantastic past of Indian hockey, but we live in the present. We are aiming for the best possible result. I can try to influence these guys. Sometimes, I succeed. Sometimes, they don’t listen,” he said.

“When expectations are only on my shoulders, I don’t care. I can cope with that pressure. The fact that people are talking like that about the team again is because we had a good year. But it shouldn’t influence the performance of the players. It is my job to make sure that they don’t get carried away and listen to the coaching staff,” he added.

The team has been experimenting with a lot of changes in recent tournaments to find the best team for Rio. That apart, captaincy is being given to several players to give more responsibility to them on the pitch.

“I think in India it’s a bit too much of responsibility because of the comparison with the cricket captain. The cricket captain has a bigger role because he’s formulating the strategy. Here, I decide the strategy, not Sreejesh and not even Sardar. The philosophy is that I need more responsibility from players on the pitch,” said the Dutch coach.

Sreejesh said: “You can see the team’s confidence and how they played in the last few tournaments. Also, we are not judging any team now. All matches are going to be tough. Players need to concentrate and give their 100 per cent.”

The Indian team departs from here on Saturday night. After a couple of practice games in Madrid, they will land in Rio on July 29. One practice match against Spain and New Zealand are scheduled before the start of the Olympics.