I have read and heard so much about the ongoing Hockey World Cup in New Delhi and I really feel sad to hear the way people are talking about the performance of the Indian team. I really appreciate the support that all of us gave to our team and I am equally disappointed that out team did not make it to the semis or finals for that matter but I did not like phrases like 'we are disgraced' or 'we gave them support and they gave us defeat.'
We should accept a few things before we can jump to conclusions and call the Indian hockey team a disgrace. First of all we must accept the fact that the Indian team is not the best team in the world, we did not have any match practice in the last year. I read some where that the Indian team has played just 3 matches in the last year. So we were actually short on match practice. Also the confidence of the Indian team is not 100% and they do not believe that they can win.
I have religiously followed all the matches in which India played and I must say that their performance improved with every match. I also accept the fact that the players looked rusty and missed some real sitters. All the big names were missing from the team. We did beat Pakistan 4-1 and almost beat South Africa. I was there in the stadium to watch the match between India and South Africa and I was really impressed by the way the Indian team played. If you had followed the match religiously, you would have noticed that almost 65% of the time the ball was in South Africa's half and we had more ball possession than South Africa as well.
So I believe that we had set very high expectations, I also felt that this is after a long time that the Indian Hockey team got the support it deserved. The team is still in the re-building phase and should be ready soon for good. I saw it myself in the stadium that even a simple dribble by an Indian player was being cheered like a goal, each penetration into the opposition's area was also cheered like an emphatic win. I think we should just control our emotions and should consider all the facts and numbers before jumping to a conclusion and start bad mouthing. Let us give these guys some time and wish for the best.
We should accept a few things before we can jump to conclusions and call the Indian hockey team a disgrace. First of all we must accept the fact that the Indian team is not the best team in the world, we did not have any match practice in the last year. I read some where that the Indian team has played just 3 matches in the last year. So we were actually short on match practice. Also the confidence of the Indian team is not 100% and they do not believe that they can win.
I have religiously followed all the matches in which India played and I must say that their performance improved with every match. I also accept the fact that the players looked rusty and missed some real sitters. All the big names were missing from the team. We did beat Pakistan 4-1 and almost beat South Africa. I was there in the stadium to watch the match between India and South Africa and I was really impressed by the way the Indian team played. If you had followed the match religiously, you would have noticed that almost 65% of the time the ball was in South Africa's half and we had more ball possession than South Africa as well.So I believe that we had set very high expectations, I also felt that this is after a long time that the Indian Hockey team got the support it deserved. The team is still in the re-building phase and should be ready soon for good. I saw it myself in the stadium that even a simple dribble by an Indian player was being cheered like a goal, each penetration into the opposition's area was also cheered like an emphatic win. I think we should just control our emotions and should consider all the facts and numbers before jumping to a conclusion and start bad mouthing. Let us give these guys some time and wish for the best.
I think you are little over-whelmed by the atmosphere you saw in the ground.I agree India played well against SF, and most of the team members are lacking international exposure, but do these arguments really matter at that level? Who is responsible for the lack of exposure? Time can be given to the guys, but how'd the controversies, like one happened just before the world cup be controlled? What if the same team plays in next world cup and they still lack the international exposure? What if they are not given any money again before next world cup? This is not the lack-luster performance of these poor guys but of indian hockey, and the responsibility lies with IHF. The office-bearers should be punished for this result. Sports ministry should be held guilty for failure not only in hockey but in [{all the sports} - {cricket}]. Incidentally, I think BCCI is a self-goerened body with little control by sports ministry. Can same be thought for hockey?
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