Dilip Tirkey wants to maintain momentum till World Cup

Chennai, June 26 (UNI) After fulfilling the promise of achieving a podium finish in the Sultan Azlan Shah tournament, a jubilant Dilip Tirkey -led Indian hockey team arrived here from Malaysia to a rousing reception.

The delighted skipper attributed the podium finish in the prestigious tournament to the team playing as a cohesive unit after a long time. He said they were keen to carry this forward to the World Cup to be held in Germany in September.

After topping the group, India lost to eventual champions Netherlands in the semifinals, before clinching the bronze medal by defeating New Zealand in the play off.

''We played very good hockey overall. The reason for this modest success was that we clicked as a team,'' he said, as the team was accorded a warm reception by the Tamil Nadu Hockey Association.

Chief coach and former Olympian V Bhaskaran would arrive here by the late evening flight.

''The star defender said the boys were keen to sustain the momentum in the World Cup also. ''It was great to win a medal after a low in the past couple of years''.

''The morale of the team is on a high and we want to maintain this momentum in the all important World Cup'', Tirkey said, adding ''some mistakes were still to be rectified before the World Cup and we will do it in the coming days.'' Tirkey was all praise for Bhaskaran and assistant coach Harender Singh and said they were able to instil self belief in the team.

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