Despite a historic Olympic medal, the Indian men’s hockey team must try to emulate the benchmark set by Belgium and Australia if it wants to achieve gold at the 2024 Paris Games in three years’ time, said the side’s head coach Graham Reid. he said.
While Australia has been a hockey powerhouse since the 1980s, defending Olympic and world champion Belgium has taken the past 10 years by storm, winning runners-up in 2016 Rio and then gold at the Tokyo Games.
Apart from this, Belgium also won the World Cup title in 2018 before claiming the European Championship crown in 2019.
“They (Belgium and Australia) are the two world-class teams that we saw in the final (in Tokyo). I think those are the benchmarks and that’s what we need to aim for,” Reid told reporters during an open media session.
“If you look at Belgium, it’s a pretty good mirror of what we should be aiming for.”
The Indian men’s hockey team led by Manpreet Singh created history at the recently concluded Tokyo Games by winning a bronze medal after a gap of 41 years. The last of India’s eight Olympic gold medals came at the 1980 Moscow Games.
Master strategist Reid said a strong bond developed between players during the COVID-19 forced lockdown was the key to success in Tokyo.
“If you go back 15 months, it was very difficult for all of us because most of us have not seen our family for a long time. So it was great to be able to go to Tokyo and finally play. Before the Games the competition was very limited and to play at the highest level you need to compete to improve and it was difficult.”
“Once we got there the group bonded well. I kept saying that they don’t underestimate the impact the last 15 months can have on a team when you go through adversity together as a group. passes and that helps bonding and that’s what you saw in the bronze medal game.”
After a hard 3–2 win over New Zealand in their first match, India were defeated 1–7 by eventual silver medalist Australia in their next match.
Regardless of the scoreline, former Australian player-cum-coach Reid said that the Indians actually had impressive figures against the Kookaburra in that match.
“We look at the statistics behind the loss, the scoreline was 7-1 but we created a lot of opportunities in that game and actually I think we played better.
“I showed people the numbers and told them look we are not too far away, Australia has one of those days. So, it was about helping the team’s mindset to look at the next game,” he said.
Reid admitted he wanted India to finish on the podium in Tokyo after failing to take Australia past the quarter-finals as a coach in Rio five years ago.
“Olympics is in your blood but things were not going well for me in Rio. That’s what happens in the hockey quarterfinals at the Olympics, it boasts a big skull each time. This time it was Holland and last time it was Australia. So you need a little luck too.”
The coach heaped praise on young striker Simranjit Singh, who scored a key goal in the bronze medal match against Germany, saying India were lucky to take advantage of his services after not being picked in the initial 16-man squad.
Simranjit got a lucky break to be part of an Olympic-bound squad after the International Olympic Committee allowed three reserve players to be part of the squad in team competitions due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have quality players in the group. It’s about one person being able to stand apart at times when no one else does. We were lucky (with Simranjit) but there were other teams too. I think the rule change worked out very well,” Reid said.
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