Last Update: January 16, 2023, 08:19 IST
India, England share the spoils at FIH World Cup 2023 (Hockey India Twitter)
Indian coach Graham Reid looks for positives after 0-0 draw with England in FIH World Cup 2023
India could not beat England in important hockey World cup match but head coach Graham Reid said on Sunday that back to back clean sheets was an achievement for a team that had been leaking goals lately.
India played out a goalless draw against England in their second Pool D match, but still remained in the hunt for direct quarter-final qualification.
Reid said in the post-match press conference, “We have been leaking goals since the Tokyo Olympics but now we have got clean sheets consistently, which is a positive aspect of this match.”
“We missed a lot of penalty corners but at the same time we defended them well,” he said.
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India conceded 25 wickets while scoring 17 runs against Australia in the five-match series ahead of the World Cup.
The hosts also kept a clean sheet against Spain in their World Cup opener, winning 2–0.
In-form midfielder Hardik Singh was injured in the dying minutes of the final quarter against England as he went down clutching his right hamstring. He was later helped off the field.
When asked about it, Reid said, “It looked pretty bad when it came out but I’ve got an update and it’s not as bad as we originally thought. We’ll have an update on that, we’ll see.” “
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India wasted eight penalty corners and earned four. But the Indians defended the PC very well.
“At this level, when you are playing fast-paced hockey, it happens. It is always a concern if you concede so many penalty corners. We’re going to try and make amends.”
“We have to try to do better inside the opposition circle. But I am very happy with the commitment of the players. It was high skill hockey played by both teams, it was an impressive match and both came away exhausted.”
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Asked why India missed too many penalty corners but defended them very well at the same time, he said, “England and the Netherlands are very similar and they attack very quickly and they will push a lot of people and they create opportunities.” Will create
“But we defended very well. I think our keeper didn’t touch the ball from the penalty corner.”
India will play their last Pool D match against Wales on Thursday at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)