News Agency, Paris
The Indian men’s hockey team, which ended a four -decade wait for a medal in the Olympics and earned a bronze medal in Tokyo, is expecting a quality performance in Paris this year. The Indian team will begin their campaign for their second consecutive Olympic medal today, Saturday, when they will face New Zealand in the opener. Being included in the toughest ‘B’ group of the tournament, the Indian players will be challenged to go beyond their potential and perform at their best.
The Indian men’s hockey team ended its 41-year Olympic medal drought in Tokyo. This time, however, the Indian team may have to struggle more to reach a medal. India will have to face strong teams like Olympic winners Belgium, mighty Australia, Argentina in the league round itself. New Zealand and Ireland are the only two other teams in the group that are considered weak.
India need to finish among the top four teams in the group stage to continue their quest for a second consecutive medal. For that they have to win three matches. The comforting factor for India is that they have two teams to play eventually, Australia and Belgium. So India will get a chance to secure their position by winning the first three matches. However, for that, there is no doubt that they will have to play beyond their abilities. Goalkeeper P., who is known as the wall of Indian hockey. R. Sreejesh’s role will again be paramount. As he will be retiring after this tournament, the Indian team will be keen to bid a farewell to Sreejesh.
Although the Indian team is currently ranked seventh in the world, rankings do not decide matches. India had to accept defeat at home to New Zealand in the World Cup when they were ranked third. So the Indian team will definitely not make the mistake of underestimating New Zealand. “No match in the Olympics is easy. We have to play Australia, Belgium at the end. So we will focus on the first three matches,” said India coach Craig Fulton. The Indian team will surely be keen to get off to a positive start.
A balanced team
The Indian men’s hockey team selected for the Olympics is balanced. In the 16-member Indian team, 11 athletes are Olympic medalists. Jarmanpreet Singh, Sukhjit Singh, Abhishek, Rajkumar Pal, Sanjay are going to make their Olympic debut this year. This will be Sreejesh and Manpreet Singh’s fourth Olympics.
Look at Harmanpreet
Attackers like Lalit Upadhyay, Mandeep Singh, Gurjant Singh, Abhishek and Sukhjit will be expected to score goals. Central defenders Manpreet, Hardik Singh and Vivek Sagar Prasad will also have a big responsibility. Most importantly, captain Harmanpreet Singh will have to use his experience to score from the penalty corner.
● Time : 9 PM.
● Live Broadcast : Sports 18-1, 2, Jio Cinema App
