India need big win against SAfrica to keep slender hope alive

Meonchengladbach, Sep 8: The Indian hockey team is at crossroads in the 11th World cup and the side not only needs a big win against South Africa in their third league match here tomorrow but also need to hope that Germany beats Holland in the other game to keep their hopes alive in the tournament.

The Indian predicament is of their own making. They lost the opening match against Germany which they should have drawn easily.

And in their second tie they allowed England to go on a second-half scoring blitz after having taken the lead in the first session.

South Africa may not be a serious contender but is not an easy team to beat and going by the form the Indians have displayed so far, it is looking like a tough task for them.

It is a do or die situaion for the former Asian Giants and they have to win all the three remaining league matches to keep their slender hopes alive.

India had beaten South Africa in the Olympics and again in the Commonwealth Games in March, but they would like to forget that victory because the African champions had given them a run for their money.

And the way the former Asian giants have played so far it will not be surprising if the South Africans fancy themselves as winners in this crucial league match.

Though the South Africans lost their opener against formidable Holland 0-2 but they did create problems for the Dutch. The Africans matched their rivals and the title contenders had to work hard for their win.

The Africans proved that they are no minnows and the Indians will have to redraw their plans after watching Africa play Holland. In the two matches so far, apart from the brief second half display in the opening match, the Indians have left much to be desired.

Nothing has gone right for them so far. The forwards have lacked imagination and seemed to be playing without any game plan and their two match display makes it look that they have a very tough hurdle to cross.

Tomorrow, not only Indians have to win but also have to worry about the other match between Germany and Holland.

Defending champions Germany are not unbeatable but with a win against India, they are sniffing a chance of making it to the last four and they will not allow strong contenders Holland any easy access.

A German win means Holland losing two matches and that will open up the pool'B'. Forwards Gagan Ajit, Tejbir, Tushar Khandekar, Rajpal Singh and Hari Prasad will have to be more imaginative.

There is no use to play for galleries, the dribbling and stick work can earn applause from the crowds but can not fetch the goals and the goals are what India needs. Shivendra Singh has also been uneven in his performance. Surprisingly, against England the normally dependable Indian mid field also looked tentative. The quartet of Ignace Tirkey, Prabodh Tirkey, Vinay and Vikram Pillay failed to supplement the forwards who in any case were wayward.

Viren Rasquinha and Arjun Halappa have not lived upto their promise so far and these players now have the chance to come out with some sterling display to erase the bad memories of the first two days of this tournament.

The Indians are missing drag flicker Sandeep Singh and could convert only one of the four penalty corners they earned against the Englishmen.

The defence, Sandeep's absence, also looks vulnerable as in the first two matches and against South Africa, Kanwalpreet and Dilip tirkey have their work cut out. Not let any goal in and keep the pressure on the rivals.

Coach V Bhaskaran also needs to have confidence in young drag flicker V Raghunath. The promising Bangalore player has been specially flown here as a replacement for Sandeep and deserves at least a look.

Against England, he was not included in the list of 16 and could not be substituted either while India missed penalty corners.

He also needs to have a relook at his tactics. It is a pleasure to see the coach supporting his players to the hilt despite losing two crucial matches and it is now the duty of the players to pay back the faith.

Arjun Halappa as a drag flicker may have a'surprise value' but he cannot be repeated in remaining three matches and Raghunath has to be brought in.

After South Africa, the Indians will be playing Korea and the Dutch in their fourth and fifth league matches. To stay alive, they will have to win all the three matches.

On paper it may look like a very tall order for them but it is not impossible as they have nothing to lose.

The South African will not give up easily. After all, World Cup is a big platform for them and a good showing by the team here will boost the game back home. They know the Indian style so they will have their game plan.

While playing against South Africa, the outcome of the other matches will be weighing heavily on the Indians' mind and that can prove dangerous. They will have to be focused on their match and leave the rest to luck.

UNI