It may sound clichéd but it is true. The Indian hockey team fluctuates between extremes—sublime to mundane—in between matches, in the space of 24 hours. Sometimes they are good enough to match top teams like Australia and then they go down meekly to the not-so-hot England. Such vicissitude in fortunes usually costs foreign coaches their jobs. The recently concluded World Hockey League Final underlined yet again the existence of this ‘bipolar disorder’.
A bronze is what the team achieved after beating a higher-ranked Germany in the third-place playoff in Bhubaneswar. But one must also keep in mind that six German players were out with illness caused by a stomach bug. Even in that match India had to strive to eke out a narrow win, after having lost to Germany in the group stage. Not an achievement to go to town with, but considering the World Cup next year, where Olympic berths can be secured, the introduction of fresh faces in the team has given Indian hockey something to cheer about.
New chief coach Sjoerd Marijne took over after Roelant Oltmans was sacked in September. One of the reasons that Hockey India was not aligned to Oltmans’ strategy was his persistence with senior players. In the first major tournament of his fledgling coaching career, Marijne took the decision to play without stalwart Sardar Singh and ace goalkeeper P R Sreejesh. Both are former captains.
In the new set-up, around eight are playing at this level for the first time. New captain Manpreet Singh is 25 and has the experience of leading earlier. Without a young team, the whole purpose would have been lost. After a disappointing Rio Olympics, India had to build for the future. With the Commonwealth Games, Asian Games and World Cup slated next year, India needs a bigger pool. Ostensibly so, India is looking into its strength in the junior reserves. For Marijne to continue in the hot seat, these youngsters will have to deliver in 2018.