Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Aiming to shrug off a forgetable start to the year at Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Tournament, the India hockey team leaves tomorrow for a tougher test- Eight Nations tournament in Amstelveen from August 14 to 21.
The 18-member team along with coach and officials will leave Chandigarh tomorrow morning for New Delhi from where the squad would fly to Holland in the night.
Playing in Pool A of what is being billed as 8216;Mini World Cup8217;, India would be pitted against Champions Trophy winners Spain, arch-rivals Pakistan and hosts Holland.
The tournament marks the return of many seasoned players such as Gagan Ajit Singh, Kanwalpreet Singh, Didar Singh, and Bimal Lakra, who were out due to lack of form or injury.
Former Olympian Rajinder Singh Jr8217;s coaching tactics would be under intense scrutiny throughout the event. He was excused for India8217;s lackluster showing at Azlan Shah competition by IHF on the grounds that India lost some close matches.
That wouldn8217;t be the case in Holland where the onus would be on players and coach to prove their worth. Similarly, the support staff including goalkeeping coach Romeo James, assistant coach Narinder Pal Singh and trainer Sampath Kumar, too would be under the scanner. Sampath8217;s task, without the assistance of a physiotherapist or a dietician, will be doubly difficult.
Though most of the Indian players have reported fit, a few have niggling injuries. Viren Rasquinha has a sore shoulder while Bimal has groin injury and Harpal is recovering from nose injury. Both coach and trainer would have to keep physical condition of players in mind before deciding on tactics and training during the matches.
India would have the advantage that 10 out of their 18 players have played in Holland in the past few years.
So they would definitely help others to adapt to the cold conditions in Holland, besides handing over tips on handling the pressure against top international teams.
TEAM
Devesh Chauhan IOC, Bharath Chetri Karnataka, Dilip Tirkey Indian Airlines, Kanwalpreet Singh Punjab Police, Harpal Singh Namdhari, Viren Rasquinha IOC, Ignace Tirkey Services, Arjun Hallappa Indian Airlines, Bimal Lakra Indian Airlines, Jaswinder Singh IOC, Prabhdeep Singh BPCL, Deepak Thakur IOC, Gagan Ajit Singh Punjab Police, Prabhjot Singh IOC, Rajpal Singh IOC, Ravipal Singh PSB, Didar Singh Namdhari, Devinderpal Singh PSB.
Coaches: Rajinder Singh Jr PSB, Narinder Pal Singh Hyderabad. Goalkeeping coach: Romeo James BPCL. Trainer: Sampath Kumar. Manager: J.P.S. Sidhu.
