This story is from January 20, 2020

India's Olympic hockey preparations begin with a Dutch high

Two out of two wins against the world No. 3 Netherlands in their FIH Pro League debut was the perfect way for India to start the Olympic preparations. India ticked most boxes in the two victories separated by just 20 hours. But, like after every outing, there remain areas that need to be worked upon.
India's Olympic hockey preparations begin with a Dutch high
Hockey India Photo
NEW DELHI: Graham Reid wanted to keep it simple. Against the world No. 3 team? No problem. On Pro League debut? No problem. Just keep it simple. That was coach Reid's message to his boys. But that's what most of his predecessors failed to drill into the players' minds. Keeping it simple means, no panic. Keeping it simple means, follow the basics. Keeping it simple also means play the ball -- not the minute, not the occasion, not the crowd.

To quote the late Steve Jobs: "Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it's worth it in the end, because once you get there, you can move mountains."
To call two Pro League matches a mountain will be a bit too much. But add Netherlands to the mix, and India's debut in the tournament becomes a hill at least. Both are steep, though, and both have a summit. Where India kept it simple was they started well and built on it. It was like breaking the climb into two ascents.
The first one on Saturday turned out to be surprisingly easier and emphatic -- a 5-2 win. The final ascent was expectedly stiff. The Dutch are known to be good students who do their homework. They came back prepared on Sunday and took a 3-1 lead at half-time to silence the home crowd in Bhubaneswar.
That's when the change appeared. India kept it simple.
Consistency in intensity, level of energy, basics, passing, finishing, no panic. The team checked those boxes together, which is why it managed to turn the deficit around, draw level 3-3 and then win the shootout 3-1.
Five points to India, just one for the Netherlands (for a draw before shootout defeat).
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THE POSITIVES
Full marks must be given to Reid. He had been putting the blocks together for the structure and execution he could see for two consecutive high-intensity matches India played with just 20 hours in between.

"We are around the place we need to be," Reid said on Sunday.
More than the wins, the nature in which India achieved those wins is what should add to the Olympic promise.
Not letting the intensity in play to drop when chasing the game, like at 1-3 down in the second match, and then to not let mistakes creep in while creating opportunities are some of the things that have remained frustratingly under-achieved by India.
As Reid mentioned, India managed to do that in the middle of a "struggling" period on Sunday. That's a welcome change, and one that needs to be built upon in the next six months.
"One of the good things today (Sunday) was that we struggled. To win and to keep getting better and better, you need to struggle. That is how you learn," Reid, who has coached Australia in the past and spent a long time as the legendary Ric Charlesworth's assistant, said.
"I have spent too long with Ric to go out and play reckless hockey," he had said before the two-match tie commenced.
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A coach's approach towards achieving objectives determines how level-headed his players can remain in pressure situations. Besides his own training methods, Reid has tried to show India how the top teams train, by introducing things like 'combined training'. On the tour of Belgium last year, India crossed the border to Netherlands and trained with the Dutch team.
Reid's objective behind such pilot projects is to let the players know that their intensity in training and in matches can't be different. It has to remain at the same high level.
"In all our practice sessions, we are training hard to attack more often. This is evident from the way we played these two matches," said Mandeep Singh. "Even if we were unable to convert the chances at times, we were not getting bogged down by that and we continued to play an attacking game," said Mandeep.
THE TO-DO LIST
But, like after every outing, there remain areas that need to be worked upon. Most top teams will push you out of the game if you miss the kind of open chances India missed on Sunday. There were three such instances. They could have been 4-3 up at half-time, instead the hosts found themselves 1-3 down.
However, while slipping into that position was frustrating for the fans, the way the team came out of that hole spoke a lot about the unit's improved character.
"We did not lose trust and kept motivating each other. The fans also helped to carry on and keep our energy high," Mandeep said.
Overall, the team's finishing just about touched satisfactory level. It was better than before but still not at the level that every single game at the Olympics would demand.
The Indian defence, which had been the story of 2019, found itself in the middle of a nightmare during the second quarter on Sunday. Did the team switch between man-to-man marking and zonal defence? It could have been part of an experiment, but almost cost India the second game.
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Rupinder Pal Singh came back into the penalty-corner form that he is known for, with his equaliser on Sunday at a crunch moment standing out. But his defensive skills weren't consistent enough to match his experience. If he can sharpen that to go with his drag-flicks, there is no reason why he can't be part of the Olympic contingent.
India's No. 2 goalkeeper remains a riddle. Krishan Bahadur Pathak has been India's first choice as PR Sreejesh's back-up, with both switching places in the goal in alternate quarters. But Pathak hasn't been able to consistently keep a clean sheet for the minutes he is on and India has to start giving Sreejesh more game-time than just two quarters a match. There is little doubt that he will man the post for almost the entire match at the Olympics. Unless it is to avoid burnout, India need to start doing that as normal practice.
Pathak's rival for the No. 2 goalkeeper's role, Suraj Karkera, remains part of the core probables but hasn't played since the Olympics Test event in 2019, when Sreejesh was rested. India shouldn't leave for Tokyo without looking at him in some of the upcoming Pro League matches against Belgium, Australia, Germany, Great Britain, Argentina, Spain and New Zealand.
And there is a need to keep the players fresh. How to achieve that while still winning against the world's best, both home and away, will be the crucial hurdle to cross.
Similar notes will undoubtedly be on Reid's to-do list for 14 high-pressure Pro League matches that India will play next against the world's top teams, beginning with the home leg against world champions Belgium on February 8 and 9.
"If we apply ourselves and are a little aggressive on the field, then good things can happen."
Those words, from Reid, promise there will be no let-up in intensity.
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