Asian Games Hockey: PR Sreejesh backs Indian men's team to retain gold medal

NEW DELHI: India’s men’s hockey team should embrace rather than fear the Olympic qualification pressure at the Asian Games, former goalkeeper PR Sreejesh said, backing them to win gold in Japan and secure a direct ticket to Los Angeles.

India, who won bronze at the Paris Olympics, will have a chance to qualify for the 2028 Games by winning the Asian Games title, but Sreejesh believes the added incentive should not become a burden.

“They don’t need to generate any pressure within themselves. They just need to go and play their natural game,” Sreejesh said during an interaction arranged by Sony Sports Network.


“If you play that natural game, we are going to win this medal.

The former India captain, who retired after Paris Olympics, said the Asian Games should not be treated as a “pressure cooker”, pointing out that teams failing to win gold would still have another route to Los Angeles through Olympic qualifiers.

“We don't need to take Asian Games as pressure cooker kind of thing. I think the Olympics is a pressure cooker, the World Cup is a pressure cooker,” Sreejesh said.

“If you don’t win the Asian Games, you get one more chance to qualify. You do have qualifiers coming up. So, it is all about what you want to focus on.”

His confidence stems partly from the gulf he sees between India and their Asian rivals.

Pakistan, who have been one of India’s principal rivals in Asia, struggled at this year’s World Cup, while Sreejesh believes China and Korea lack the international experience of the two South Asian powerhouses.

“India and Pakistan are the only two [Asian] teams which are competitive in the Pro League nowadays,” he said.

Sreejesh expects India to meet Pakistan in the final and is confident of the outcome.

“India might get Pakistan again in the finals and we are going to win it,” he said.

But the former goalkeeper also sounded a note of caution after India’s World Cup campaign fell short of his expectations. He had expected the team to reach the semi-finals, only for them to lose to England and Argentina, and finish eighth.

For India, he said, the priority now should be tightening a defense that conceded too many goals and developing alternatives in the penalty corner department, particularly with captain Harmanpreet Singh likely to attract special attention.

“Harman is going to be a target for every team. So they will come up with a plan for Harman,” Sreejesh said.

“We need to work on some variations in the penalty corner and definitely give a lot of importance to the defense.”

His warning was simple: attacking firepower alone will not be enough. India conceded 12 goals in the second round of the World Cup and scored only six to miss.

“If you score three and concede four, it doesn’t make any sense,” he said.

India’s women face a tougher challenge, according to Sreejesh.

“I think for the women's team, it's going to be a bit challenging because Japan and China, are equally good. But, we are going to be there in the medal tally,” he said.

For the men, however, his prediction is unequivocal: gold, and with it a direct passage to Los Angeles.

“The team knows the value of these games because that gives you a direct ticket to the Olympic Games. They just need to take off that extra pressure.”