Shivender Singh“Asiad Gold is our mission”
Shivender Singh. The name strikes. We love him score, as each of his strikes make a chord with us. His goals are stylish, each sends stands to crazy high. Hawk in the circle, the lad from Gwalior is one player whom hockey fans would like to know more about. Stick2hockey.com spoke to him exclusively, and talks about wide range of issues that matter — his recent performances, the runner-up finish at the Commonwealth Games 2010, preparations for the 2010 Asian Games and importance of winning Gold at Guangzhou. <p </p
Q. How was it to hit the last goal in the CWG semi-final tie-breaker, as pressure was on you as you were taking the last push?
SHIVENDER: It was a great feeling when I hit those goals. Goals that you hit when the team needs them give a exceptional feel which is very difficult to explain. It was the most important semi-finals and we were down. Then we came back from behind and when I hit that final penalty stroke, netting the goal, it was a great feeling. Actually when we were 3-1 down, even then we knew that we needed a little luck to get back to levels because we were creating a lot of openings. Even during the extra time we should have won but a couple of attacks were foiled by the English keeper. It seems the game was destined to go to the strokes and it was good we finished on the winning side.
Q. Did it help big Games at home or were you guys under tremendous pressure because of the home expectations?
SHIVENDER: It’s always good to have such big tournaments at home. For me it was a lot of support which made the difference. It gives us a kick when the crowd goes mad each time we go into attack mode. On many occasions this kind of brings down opposition morale as well. I would credit a lot for our performance to the crowd. They truly supported us and even though we lost to Aussies, the crowd was kind. The pressure is there but if you measure it with respect to the kind of support that we get at home, the pressure is minimal. Let me add something, when you play for the country, the pressure is always there.
Q. You have been a part of the side which has seen a lot of ups lately after the 2008 debacle. Whom do you credit of the success which the team has seen lately?
SHIVENDER: The coach has been really active with us. He has always planned his strategies meticulously and has different plans for all teams according to their strengths and weaknesses. That has really helped us. We ourselves have given our best shot and the results are just testimonials of what we have training like. We have won major tournaments and finished in good positions in tournaments we haven’t won so we can say that the team is in good form at the moment.
Q. How was it playing Pakistan again after having beaten then earlier during the World Cup at home? Were you guys under pressure?
SHIVENDER: Playing Pakistan is always special and it becomes doubly good when you have such a support like we had at the Dhyanchand stadium on both those days. Their coach had said that we will silence the Delhi crowd and we made sure to make a statement that only performance can silence anyone. Our strategy was simple and that was to attack from the word go. Our coach had said that a couple of goals will open up their defense and we will get more opportunities and that happened. Pakistan buckles under pressure and they did the same.
Q. Moving forward, how are the preparations going for the Asian Games? What do you think are the strong points of the side entering a tough competition like the Asian Games?
SHIVENDER:See we have been playing well and our forward line including me have been in really good form so I guess we have it in us to bag the Gold at the Asian Games but as you know sport on maximum occasions is a matter of those 70 minutes and a few mistakes can cost you the game. Still I certainly think we have a strong chance. We are especially working on a few areas which were we think we need to focus a little more to improve the game.
Q. What do you have to say about the competition levels at the Asian Games?
SHIVENDER: South Korea, China, Malaysia and Pakistan will be tough. Pakistan especially as they have lost to us continuously in big tournaments. This time also we have been hearing that they are quoting revenge of their previous defeats. I would again advice them to perform first, win and then talk (laughs). But yes overall the competition again is going to be tough but we have what it takes to win the Gold.
Q. How important is to win the Gold at the Asian Games since this will make sure you guys qualify directly for the London Olympics?
SHIVENDER: It is very important for us to win the Gold and qualify automatically for the Olympics in London. I cannot tell you the kind of disappointment we, as players, had experienced after losing the chance of playing at Beijing. Players are the most disappointed lot, as all of us dream to play Olympics. It is those dreams that make us play and train so hard.
Q. So are you trying to say that playing qualifiers is a huge pressure thing?
SHIVENDER: Of course, it is a lot of pressure to play in the qualifiers and that is why we don’t want to get into that stage. We want to finish it here at the Asian Games. If you have to play Qualifiers, it leads to do-or-die situation, then the pressure adds, often forcing you to commit mistakes. Keeping all this in mind, we would like finishing with Gold at China and qualifying directly for London in 2012.