‘India now have variety in drag-flick’

Indian hockey team will show what they are capable of in the forthcoming Commonwealth Games, says drag-flick coach Jugraj Singh.

Jugraj, who is training the ‘men in blue’ at the Shiv Chhatrapati Sports Complex in Balewadi, says this time the players are better prepared than they were for the World Cup in February. “That time, the boys were under pressure because of the controversies. But they are fresh now and raring to go,” he said.

Jugraj has been training the drag-flickers in the team for the last few months. “They are doing a good job and it will be seen during the Games,” he says.

Jugraj is coaching the same players who played in the World Cup. It was noticeable that the department failed to perform in that tournament. “Yes, I agree that the drag-flickers were not up to the mark. But it was not just our players; drag-flickers from other countries also did not score. The only difference was that they were able to bring variations, while we could not.”

This time, however, India is ready with a good variety of penalty-corner specialists, he claims.

It’s been seven years since Jugraj met with an accident that ended his career as a player. It was a really low phase of his life, but it was his never-say-die attitude that helped him come back to the game, he says.

“Many people believed that I would never be able to take the hockey field again, but there were others who had faith in my ability and here I am,” says the former drag-flicker.

“I thank god and people who were there with me when I needed them,” he says adding that he is at the best of his fitness and has no regrets.

Indian hockey team is surrounded by controversies every now and then but Jugraj says he prefers to stay away from them. “My job is to train the boys and that is all,” he said.