India was the beter side

If you don’t look at the scoreboard in the crucial match against The Netherlands, India was the better side. True, we lost by the narrowest of margins to the World No. 2 team, but that was due to our faulty approach we adopt in the domestic games, rather than what transpired on the Chennai turf. Our umpires don’t mind if our players continue playing even after the whistle. But it is veritably an intended foul and merits a penalty corner world over. Our defenders did that in wrong time, and paid for it. I am surprised our coaches and players went hammer and tongs against the award of penalty corner in the dying minutes, which ultimately decided the outcome of the match. But for this congenital habit, we could have stolen a point from the Netherlands and walked out heads held high.

It is sickening for me to see decades together that our players and coaches arguing with umpires though it is a well settled fact that umpires see the things better than the players. Everyone connected with the game of hockey including media should see the things in right perspective instead of seeking to hide our defeat in the garb of ‘self-perceived’ umpiring hassles.

If we can play so well against such a formidable team as The Netherlands, what has made to be so complacent in the initial phase? Our team was inconsistent, under-prepared for the task. We are not playing a disciplined hockey expected of us.

For a while it appeared our defenders did a good job against such a sharp team as the reigning Olympic silver Mediallists, The Netherlands, but if we put the stats in front of us, the picture emerge is entirely different. When a defence phalanx concedes as many as eight penalty corners, it’s obvious something is wrong.

The biggest flaw in the team is attack. Both experienced spearheads Gagan Ajit and Prabhjot Singh has underperformed, which is unexpected. Still, I feel we are a better side than Pakistan.

We have a better penalty corner hitter in Sandeep Singh. In any given day he is better than Pakistan hitters Imran Warsi and Imran Muhammad. Another plus point in our favour is goalkeeper Bharat Chetri. He is find of the tournament. Getting nominated Man of the Match twice in such competitive tournament like Champions Trophy is not a small achievement. So, Bharat Chetri will go any length today (Sunday) in our fight against the Pakis. This match is crucial for us because the loser will be relegated from the next Champions Trophy to be held in Terrassa, Spain.

On the other hand Pakistan’s strength is their forwardline. To be specific, their positioning inside the striking circle. They are doing better in picking up the rebounds. Our midfielders and defenders have to exercise extraordinary caution in not allowing such easy goals. It is better if we finish fifth and make sure of continuity in the champions league. This one win on Sunday can bring some solace to disappointed sports lovers. I am confident we can for the first time the history of Champions trophy, we can defeat Pakistan twice.