The Hindu : Sport : Daunting task awaits selectors

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 16, 2006

Sport

Sport

Daunting task awaits selectors

S. Thyagarajan

Teams to be selected on Thursday

THINK TANK: The IHF selectors (from left) B.P. Govinda, Gurbux Singh, K.P.S. Gill (Chairman), K. Jothikumaran (Secretary) and Harmik Singh watching the Independence Cup matches. — Photo: R. Ragu.

Chennai: A daunting task awaits the selectors when they sit on Thursday to pick the hockey team for the World Cup at Monchengladbach and the South Asian Games in Colombo.

Matches in the Independence Cup have provided a surfeit of images from what is possibly the cream of National talent.

Even if one assumes that the nucleus is identified after the podium finish at the Azlan Shah and the triumph recorded in the invitation event in Poland, the committee is bound to face the pressure of effecting a proper balance. What probably will add an element of complexity relates to forming a strong and resilient midfield.

Principal factor

Contemporary hockey is a shining mosaic of skill and system where vibrancy and verve of the mid-field emerge as the principal factor. On paper a good collection is available for choice, but there is a nagging worry whether anyone could be projected as a schemer of class.

India does not have a midfielder in the calibre of Jeroeme Delmee of The Netherlands or Muhammad Saqlain of Pakistan. The choice is limited to Viren Resquinha or Vikram Pillay. The experiment of fielding Ignace Tirkey too has not succeeded.

Chief coach V. Baskaran will be reluctant to disturb the flankers V.S. Vinay and Prabodh Tirkey. Both were outstanding during the Azlan Shah Cup. Given the crop available, the midfield may consist of Vinay, Vikram, Viren, Ignace, Prabodh, with Arjun Halappa performing the role of a linkman.

There is a noticeable freshness in the frontline with the trio of Shivendra, Tushar Khandekar and Hariprasad forming the backbone with the seasoned Tejbir, Gagan Ajit Singh and Rajpal Singh. The best bet at the moment is Shivendra Singh as the principal striker. He can be lethal inside the circle with blinding deflections.

The selectors are unlikely to tamper with the defence combination of Dilip Tirkey, Kanwalpreet Singh and Sandeep Singh. The same can be said for goalkeepers Adrian D'Souza and Bharat Chetri.

In this projection, there is one slot left for the 18th player. The choice could be either Nitin Kumar as an additional midfielder or Harpal Singh as the fourth defender. Baskaran may prefer an extra midfielder-cum-attacker than a full-fledged defender.

Quality show

The quality show by the Development team, coached by Clarance Lobo and Muhammad Riaz, is convincing enough to conclude about its competence to match the challenge at the SAF Games where India defends the gold.

The display of Sandeep Micheal, Gurvinder Singh and Adam Sinclair coupled with that of Vickram Kanth and Sardara Singh inspires confidence. Drag-flicker Raghunath's inconsistency may be a worrying factor.

The selectors can well opt for the inclusion of Bikramjit Singh from the Juniors as the third defender for South Asian Games. This will be a bold step and a reward for the youngster whose conversion rate was the best in the tournament so far.

Whether the lop-sided matches witnessed so far can be a correct index for selection is a prudent observation. But performances in match situations are infinitely better than monotonous selection trials.

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