Hockey World Cup: India facing 'the last mile problem', writes Sundeep Misra

AJ Leibling one of the greatest boxing writers who wrote regularly for The New Yorker once described a Rocky Marciano vs Archie Moore bout as Marciano volleyed punches so quickly he thought that Moore simply tired of getting out of their wayIndia skipper Sardar Singh left vies with Englands Nick Catlin on MondayIn the match against England the Indians punched so often ran innumerable rings around the English that it made them tired and dizzy They grew weary of dominating for such lengths of time that when it came to picking up the rewards they didnt have much muscle left England came to the party late but walked off with the bubblyYou cant feel sorry for the Indians But the lasting image of the match is not Simon Mantell flinging his stick on the ground after snatching a last minute winner but of Sreejesh the Indian goalkeeper kneeling on the ground chin on stick trying not to rewind the last minuteEven in the past 20 years India have dominated and lost The only difference here at this World Cup has been the level of disciplined domination they have brought into their game They after a long time look coachedThe last time India seemed to have adapted to a coached system was when Jose Brasa came in to head the coaching department The defeats do matterIn sport what counts in the ultimate analysis is a win the number of victories But here at The Hague India after two matches have zero pointsIn the worst case scenario it should have been a point each from the first two games After the 12 loss to England even the English journalists admitted India deserved to win the game but yes thats the way the cookie crumblesIts too early to see a silver lining in the tournament Terry Walsh the Indian coach sat at the press conference after the match against England a little lost for wordsWhat he had just seen was a team coming of age growing up gradually but on the points tally there was nothing to show for all that effort Yes England was lucky even their coach Bobby Crutchley admitted we rode our luckBut words wont calm the disappointment and frustration the players must be feeling Maybe if they understand the pain of growing up or suddenly from being pygmies they are being shown they have the potential to be giants they would take the lessons in their stride and look beyond the defeatsIn India it is fashionable to put down anything that doesnt win But sometimes there is a thin line between defeat and victory And its not only about the points and the position in the pool table its also about coming out of the well Indian hockey has clamped itself inPoor coaching methods and no link to the level world hockey has risen was a bigger frustration for the players than just the defeats Indias HighPerformance director Roelant Oltmans said Dont ask us what Indian hockey requires he said on questions relating to Indian vs foreign coaches Ask the playersIndia still has three matches to go in the Pool stage And anything can be accomplished But it will be good thing if the players and the management are persisted withIts been years since an Indian team held onto the ball and didnt indulge in showman ship Though once or twice in a match it is helpful to tell the audience what the Indians are capable off But keeping the ball within them ndash Sardar Manpreet Singh and Gurbaz Singh ndash actually showed patience in hockey is also an assetThe Gurbaz of old would have run down the left flank dodging past a few players losing the ball and then outpaced by the opponent forward Most often it resulted in a goal or a penalty cornerNow they appear solid at the back They rotate the ball confident that they have Sardar one of the best ballplayers in the world who can move forward when the need arisesAgainst England if luck would have been an Indian the score line should have been 31 the stroke that was cancelled out by the video umpire also needs a lookin If an umpire awards a stroke for what he believes was a strong enough foul it should at least result in a penalty corner or a free hitThe bullyoff outside the circle seems like a man sentenced to death by hanging for murder has been let off with a years all paid trip to his favourite destinationIndia has a group that can grow in their shoes and actually dominate world hockey or at least be counted among the top four Marc Lammers the Belgium coach and the one who took the Dutch women to the 2008 Olympic gold said They play like a top four side Its just a matter of time before they start dominatingTo dominate for periods in a match is easy But to dominate for long periods consistently and to win consistently requires serious planning and huge amounts of patience India does have weaknesses They require a goal poacher Or try and convert Mandeep Singh into a consistent scorerHe scored brilliantly against Belgium but missed two open chances against England Sardar the captain said Its his first World Cup and he is learning and after more exposure he would be a world classAkashdeep Singh is another player who has impressed His positioning is excellent and has the knack of knowing where the ball might come from His goal against Belgium was top class The others playing excellent hockey are Dharamvir Singh Kothajit Chinglesana and the goalkeeper SreejeshThe Malaysian coach Muhammad Dharma Raj speaking about India said India should win its match against Spain Your team is playing very well Everybodys talking about you guysEven though Spain is not at the top of its game India will be stupid to take them lightly At the moment points are of essence to be able to stay in the run for a higher classification finish England and Spain have already split points and a few upsets might turn the table upside down India needs to look ahead And not cry over spilt milk Their matches against Spain and Malaysia are of huge importance Professional sport always teaches us more when we lose And if the Indians start learning from their losses then winning will get much easier and more commonplaceIndia have over the years produced doityourself forwards Now they are being taught to be part of a team ethos Top heavy Indian teams had the brilliance of players like in the past ndash Harbinder Singh Mohammed Shahid Jagbir Singh Dhanraj Pillay ndash but today the rear guard action needs strengtheningDisciplined backs sneaky midfielders and goal poachers are todays requirements Maybe finally we are getting there Its time for the myopic to start wearing corrective lenses