Hindustan Times ST (Mumbai) - Live
Australia’s 5-0 sweep of India and lessons from it
Harmanpreet Singh and Co turned up with renewed vigour at the Perth Hockey Stadium on Saturday, going on the offensive and imposing the high press against Australia. Like in the previous two games, India took the lead, this time through their skipper in the fourth minute.
But it was the same story all over again as India were handed a fifth consecutive defeat as Australia completed a 5-0 rout in the bilateral hockey test series. Boby Singh Dhami (53rd) scored India’s other goal while the Kookaburras scored via Jeremy Hayward (20th), Ky Willott (38th) and Tim Brand (39th) to be 3-1.
Australia have always been the bogey team for India, against whom they have had a psychological block as well, more than any other team. While India chief coach Craig Fulton wanted to take them head on, the men in canary yellow reinforced their dominance, hammering 17 goals to India’s seven in the five games.
The positives first. One good outcome was the maturity and agility displayed by India’s goalkeepers, especially veteran PR Sreejesh. The former skipper was in great form throughout to thwart several Aussie attacks, including penalty corners (PC). Krishan Bahadur Pathak also made multiple flying saves.
India’s drag-flickers also delivered in Perth with two-time FIH Player of the Year Harmanpreet scoring three goals. Jugraj Singh also stepped up when the team opted to go for the second battery.
The most disappointing was the defence which stayed too deep, allowing Australia to earn more PCs. “We need to take it up a little higher. If you go too deep, the possibility of conceding PCs
against a world class team like Australia who take the ball so quickly, the chances of errors in D are that much higher,” ex-India skipper Viren Rasquinha said.
Seniors like Harmanpreet, Sreejesh and Manpreet Singh should take decisions under pressure and communicate to help the defenders push up, and they in turn can push the midfield, easing pressure. Australia have been a super tough opponent due to their ferocity and pace. The intensity till the end is not something India face, especially in training.
The defence also needed to maintain calm, especially when India had the lead and possession. “We were struggling to hold more than four passes at any point. Also, we were playing with a 27-member squad. So, in every match the combination was changing as Fulton was trying out players to make the Olympic squad; that also had an impact on the results,” Rasquinha said.
The strikers too did not exert full press when India led, struggling against the pace and tempo of Australia. When the hosts won
the turnover, they attacked rapidly and threw 5-6 forwards up front, which India could never replicate.
The question is whether the 0-5 rout will impact India, who face Australia next at the Paris Olympics on August 2 in the last group game that could decide qualification for the quarters. “They only have to win one game against Australia this year and they will be happy. If they were not used to losing to Australia then mentally it would have had a big impact. But Australia have always had their dominance for a long time over India,” said Shane McLeod, who coached Belgium to gold at the 2018 World Cup, 2019 European title and the Tokyo Games. Fulton was then his assistant.
“So, it is nothing new. Everyone will very quickly forget this series if at the Olympics, India get a win over Australia. Then the exercise they have gone through is very successful. You don’t win any medal for winning a Test series against a team playing at home. It’s the game of consequence that they really should be judged on,” McLeod said from Antwerp.