India men’s hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh has expressed the team’s commitment to ending the nation’s 51-year wait for the FIH Hockey World Cup title. He emphasized that the squad is prepared to give their utmost effort in the upcoming tournament.
Having won the 1975 edition by beating Pakistan 2-1 in the final, the World Cup glory has eluded India for the last 50 years. India was drawn in Pool D along with England, Wales and arch-rivals Pakistan.
So, how to convert those 50-50 chances, how to do the receiving well under pressure, how to smartly produce an outcome in the D, whether it’s a shot on goal or earning a penalty corner, those things will be critical,” he said. “Because when you defend well, situations will arise to consistently enter the opponent’s D.
Because after this World Cup, you never know what might happen, “The World Cup means a lot to all of us.
Speaking to JioStar, Harmanpreet said the World Cup presents a major opportunity for the team, especially with several senior players in the squad. There are several senior players in the team as well, so for us, this is a great opportunity,” Harmanpreet said. The captain said the team’s hard work and preparations have given them confidence that they can challenge for the title, while their back-to-back Olympic medals in Tokyo and Paris have provided additional motivation. We will go all out,” he said. We have practised really well in that area,” he said.
“It’s easy to say, and the journey will be tough and rough, but we are ready. The team trusts one another and our mindset is positive. Who scores or who defends doesn’t matter, as long as we win as a team. “Our first priority will be defence. If we defend well throughout the tournament, we will be close to achieving what we have come here for.
