Captain Sreejesh backs Dutchman, whose contract is set to expire after 2016, to continue as head coach of team despite Olympics disappointment
The word change is synonymous with hockey in India. Axing coaches year after year is no longer a surprise, while a bad result in a major tournament often ends careers of players.
The trend seems to be changing. Despite a below-par eighth finish in the 2016 Rio Olympics, Hockey India (HI) selectors have decided to stick with the core of the team for the upcoming Asian Champions Trophy (ACT) as they announced the squad on Thursday.
And, captain PR Sreejesh has backed head coach Roelant Oltmans to continue in his role. The Dutchman's contract is set to expire at the end of the year, and HI president Narinder Batra is yet to decide on whether to extend his stay.
The Sports Authority of India (SAI), in its report after the Games, had blamed the performance of foreign coaches for India's poor show across various disciplines, and it is believed that Oltmans's name was in that list.
"Look, it's for SAI and HI to take those decisions," Sreejesh told dna on Thursday when asked if he would like Oltmans to continue as head coach. "But yes, it will be good if Roelant stays back, as well as the other support staff.
However, it's something that HI has to decide, not the players. And I think the association will take the right decision for us."
Continuity seems to be the new mantra, and it reflected in the team selection for the ACT as well, which is scheduled to be held in Malyasia from October 20 to 30. From the squad that flew to Rio, three players – defender VR Raghunath and forwards Akashdeep Singh and Ramandeep Singh – have been rested, while only two players – defender Harmanpreet Singh and midfielder Danish Mujtaba – have been excluded.
The selectors have blooded seven new players into the 18-member squad. The crux of the group remains unchanged, and that has pleased the captain.
"We have carried this core group for a long time now, so we want to give more opportunities to the youngsters, more platforms to showcase what they are capable of doing at the top level.
"So yes, it's really good to have the same core group after the Olympics, because the coordination and understanding between the players is at a really high level now, which in turn helps us perform better on the field," said the 28-year-old.
India had fielded the youngest team among all other nations at the Games, and except for six players, all others were making their maiden appearance at the mega event.
"It's all about how you're using your experience on the field," Sreejesh said when asked what the youngsters took out of the Olympic sojourn. "Half of the players had experience in Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, World Cup and other such big tournaments. But yes, Olympics is a different ball game altogether in terms of the pressure and the environment in which you have to perform.
"So, having been there is going to help the youngsters in the upcoming years and major events. At the end of the day, it's all about the player's mentality, how they are going to take up a challenge and deal with it," added the skipper.
The first major test of that will come on October 23, when India take on Pakistan in ACT. In the backdrop of the current hostile situation between the two neighbours, that match is expected to be emotionally charged. But Sreejesh won't let that get into the minds of his players.
"On the field, it's just another match for us. You either win points, or you lose. That's it. But off the field, in the newspapers and TV channels, definitely it's going to be like a war. That's because it's an emotional thing for each and every Indian.
"But if you mix up a country's political or economic situations and such things with sport, then everything goes in a negative direction. For us, it's all about winning a tournament. And for that, we'll need to beat Malaysia, Korea and yes, even Pakistan. For us, it's all about the game. Players never want to mix up the game and situations outside," added the goalkeeper from Kerala.
Sreejesh on Olympics show
If you see the way we played, the performance was good. But I think the result was not good. It really disappointed every player. The key game was the Canada one (India were held 2-2). Had we won that match, we would've faced Spain in the quarterfinals, which would've been a different story. So we're disappointed that we couldn't get the result we had expected from ourselves. But it's a big learning lesson. If you're missing one training session, there's another team which is training two sessions extra to win the tournament. So, every training session is important, and every match is important. That's what we learnt, and I hope we won't repeat that come the 2020 Games.
SQUAD FOR ASIAN CHAMPIONS TROPHY
Goalkeepers: PR Sreejesh (captain), Akash Chikte
Defenders: Rupinder Pal Singh, Pardeep Mor, Jasjit Singh Kular, Birendra Lakra, Kothajit Singh, Surender Kumar
Midfielders: Chinglensana Singh Kangujam, Manpreet Singh (vice-captain), Sardar Singh, SK Uthappa, Devindar Walmiki
Forwards: Talwinder Singh, SV Sunil, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Nikkin Thimmaiah, Affan Yousuf
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
 "Sreejesh")
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}