Too many unforced errors reason of our loss, says hockey coach Harendra Singh

08/31/2018

The chief coach of the Indian men’s hockey team Harendra Singh is disappointed with the team’s performance in the semi-final against Malaysia in the ongoing Asian games and believes the players committed a lot of unforced errors. India lost to Malaysia in the sudden death of the shootout.

Tournament favorites India were defeated by Malaysia in a closely-fought battle in the semi-final on Thursday and the Indian coach is certainly not happy with the team’s performance. He feels that the defending champions wasted a very good opportunity to get a direct entry into the Tokyo Olympics.

"We committed too many unforced errors and paid the price. We did not keep things simple. We tried to show our Indian skills and by doing that we lost the momentum. It is a big setback for Indian hockey. The road to Olympics is a lot bumpier now. We missed the easiest chance to qualify,” Harendra said after the match.

After the game ended in a 2-2 draw in regulation time, it went into the shootout and then to sudden death. Malaysia defeated India 7-6 in the shootout and booked a berth in the Asian games final. The chief coach slammed the players for the silly mistakes committed in the entire duration of the game.

“Malaysia are the deserving winners. They were only looking to score on the counter and both their goals came from the counter. We had a plan to shift and pass but we tried to hold the ball and made parallel passes. That cost us the game. Also, we committed too many unforced errors. It is unpardonable. Shoot out is anybody’s game. If we would have won, we should not have celebrated. In shoot-out, turning around is a problem. If your centre of gravity is low then it is easier (to turn around), if it is high then it becomes a problem,” stated Harendra.

Harendra was asked about the team becoming a bit complacent after scoring 76 goals in the tournament and their one-sided victories. He also said that the team is looking at the bronze medal now and they have to pick themselves up before the play-off.

“I don’t think so, we took them as serious practice matches. We never take any team lightly. But this loss is a setback for Indian hockey. Coaches will come and go. The boys will have to pick themselves up. There is still a medal at stake,” the Indian coach mentioned.

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Too many unforced errors reason of our loss, says hockey coach Harendra Singh

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