India ready to get down to business in quarter-finals

INDIA are done “warming-up”.

They are ready to step on the gas now that they are in the World Cup quarter-finals.

India, who last won the World Cup in Kuala Lumpur in 1975, topped Group C with two wins and a draw.

They outplayed South Africa 5-0 before holding world No. 3 Belgium to a 2-2 draw and in their third match on Saturday night, India trounced Canada 5-1 at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar.

India coach Harendra Singh (pic) had mixed reaction over the team’s run to the quarter-finals but said they were looking forward to the real battle when they face winners of the match between Canada and Holland on Dec 13 in the knockout stage.

“We were confident of topping the group and reaching the quarter-finals but unfortunately, we failed to keep a clean sheet in every group match,” said Harendra.

“We conceded two goals to Belgium.

“I’m not happy with the scoreline as we missed a lot of final passes.

“Our defence is still not in top form yet and we need to work on this before our quarter-final match.

Harendra wants to keep the momentum going by keeping their home fans happy.

“The knockout stage is like climbing a mountain, there will be less oxygen the closer you go to the top, the fittest will survive. We will prepare and plan for the quarter-finals,” he said.

“We’re on the right track, we’ve the right mood and atmosphere to help us achieve our targets.

“The fans have high expectations on us and we want to maintain a good run throughout in the tournament.

“The challenge is on us to play well and reach the final.”