CHENNAI: To go by the end result, India’s silver-medal winning efforts in Glasgow do offer hope. The means to the end, too, suffuses much promise, though suggestions of a revival are too far-fetched. That Australia thrashed them twice underlines the disparity between the best and the also-rans.
The eight-time Olympic champions’ surge into the last four was predicted, grouped as they were with bottom-dwellers like Wales, Scotland and South Africa. The contests with Australia and New Zealand offered a reality check.
As anticipated, Australia proved they were a few notches ahead of India, though the latter did press them in the league encounter. “There are leagues ahead of us, but we are gradually catching up. The group-match was close, we took time to settle down and they scored three goals in the first 20 minutes. But in the second half, we not only had the better of chances but also gave away little,” skipper Sardar Singh told Express.
Remarkably, though, they overturned a two-goal arrear to beat New Zealand in a nervy semifinal, and that too without Sardar. “They are a strong team and have beaten us quite consistently in the last few years. But the boys were determined to win the match, and they were really pumped up. In the last CWG also, we had a similar semifinal against England. It was one of our best performances in recent times,” he reflected.
The last-10-minute blues, which blighted their World Cup, didn’t surface much. Except against Scotland, whom they thrashed 6-2, they didn’t concede any goal in the last 10 minutes. “It’s a bad habit and it was more a mental than physical thing. You know, most of these are young and they were a bit nervous in the World Cup. But in Glasgow they played with more freedom and sustained their intensity throughout the 70 minutes,” he said.
Most of the youngsters rose to the occasion while a few seasoned pros shed their rustiness. “Youngsters like Nikkin Thimmaiah, Akashdeep Singh and Ramandeep Singh had an excellent tournament while seniors like Gurbaj Singh and Gurvinder Singh Chandi returned to form. Chandi is a brilliant playmaker and can score a lot of goals and he proved it again. Gurbaj, too, worked really hard in all the matches and he is back to his best,” he said.
Short-corner conversion was another heartening aspect. Whereas drag-flickers VR Raghunath and Rupinderpal Singh fired blanks in the World Cup, they were more accurate and imaginative in Glasgow. “Both of them were very disappointed after the World Cup. It was not a matter of not trying, but they were just not able to find the back of the net. So both spent a lot of time practising their flicks. And that paid dividends,” he said.
They seek to carry forth their form into the Asian Games. “The field is different, but there are strong teams like Korea, Malaysia and Pakistan. Last time, we didn’t do as well and lost to Malaysia in the semifinal. But this time, we are prepared and will look to keep the form going,” he said.
Sardar believes the side could be a force to be reckoned with in the Rio Olympic Games in 2016. But presently, the focus is squarely on Incheon and not Glasgow.