ORDOS (China): A relatively young Indian hockey team will have to play out of their skin and avoid silly errors against a formidable South Korea on Tuesday if they desire to keep their unbeaten run intact at the inaugural Asian Champions Trophy.
Having started the tournament on a high with a 5-0 pounding of hosts China, India suffered a setback of sorts when they were held to a 1-1 draw by Japan, largely due to a lapse in concentration from the defensive line which led to a last-minute equaliser.
But against the nimble-footed Koreans the Indians cannot afford to relax at any moment as a defeat at this stage of the tournament can jeopardise their chances.
India would be eyeing an outright win as a defeat or another draw can make life difficult for the Rajpal Singh-led side ahead of tough fixtures against Guangzhou Asian Games gold-medallist champions Pakistan and runners-up Malaysia.
Under new coach Michael Nobbs, the Indians have exhibited a new style of hockey in this tournament — a blend of India’s aggression and Australia’s sharpness — which so far paid dividends for the erstwhile Asian giants. But India has a chance against the experienced Koreans if they can hold their rivals in the midfield and cut the runs down the flanks.
The Indian defence of Rupinder Pal Singh and V Raghunath have played well so far in this tournament but need more experience to soak pressure.
For India, the two key areas against Korea will be penalty corners and midfield. Gurbaz Singh is in good form and Ravi Pal can become the fulcrum if he plays through the middle.
Inspite of huge expectation from his wards, India coach Nobbs is realistic about his team’s chances in the tournament.
“As I said earlier, you cannot expect them to do miracles in a month. Everything takes time and when we play teams like South Korea, we would realize what are the negatives and the positives,” Nobbs said. (PTI)