Tokyo Olympics: Indian men’s hockey team ends league phase on high note
The team did that splendidly with a 5-3 win over hosts Japan to finish second in the table after Australia with four victories from five matches
Hyderabad: Although India booked their quarterfinal berth on Thursday itself, Friday’s match was all about finishing the Group A league phase on a high note. The Graham Reid-team did that splendidly with a 5-3 win over hosts Japan to finish second in the table after Australia with four victories from five matches. It is truly a magnificent performance by all means. When did India finish second in the league table in the Olympics. We struggled to qualify to the next stage all these years. This team has breathed confidence even though they suffered a big 1-7 drubbing at the hands of Australia. But they regrouped and regained their confidence by three successive wins.
For me, the biggest positive point is the forward line getting goals as till now the penalty drag flickers were doing the job for India. Although they fumbled at the start, they gained in confidence as the game progressed. It was a lovely sight to see striker Gurjant Singh (17th, 56th), Shamsher Singh (34th) and Nilankanta Sharma (51st minute) getting the field goals. They brought a sense of urgency in the Japanese `D’ area. It is all about focus and looking for opportunities in the strike zone. It needs a little skill, ball sense and finishing touches. They were proactive and efficient at the business end on Friday.
The other crucial point was that it was a fast-paced game and the Indians passed the test in speed, endurance and never lost their focus. It was a day when the midfield and the forwards worked in tandem perfectly. The midfield, led by skipper Manpreet Singh, kept the forward busy with streams of passes. Yet again it was Harmanpreet Singh’s short corner strike that gave India the first goal in the 13th minute. Simranjeet combined nicely with Gurjant. It was one-two move with Gurjant sending a good pass to Simranjeet who sped through but his shot rebounded from goalkeeper’s pads and Gurjant did the rest.
Japan are always good at breakaway moves. They are very fast and Kenta Tanaka surprised with a 19th minute goal as defender Birendra Lakra fumbled with the ball and Tanaka whipped it past goalkeeper PR Sreejesh.
The game picked up a good pace. Japan restored parity through Kota Watanabe (33rd) in a counter-attack. However, a rejuvenated India began to control the proceedings. Japan goalkeeper Koji Yamasaki was kept busy. Shamsher Singh got into the act as he deflected in Nilakanta Singh’s pass. Nilakanta was himself in the scorer’s list. Harmanpreet sent a long aerial pass on the left and Surender Kumar relayed the ball to Nilakanta who shot home. India rounded up the day with Gurjant putting in off a variation from the team’s fourth penalty corner. Kazuma Murata (59th) scored the third goal for Japan but Indian players were all smiles at the end of the game.
(The author is a three-time hockey Olympian)
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