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Two Test series wins against two higher ranked sides in the last twelve months and that too, in their own backyard should surely throw up a feeling that Indian hockey is slowly but steadily clambering up the ladder. The recent 2-1 Test series triumph of the 8th ranked Indian side against 7th ranked New Zealand in their own den has clearly brought to the fore the rapid progress of the national men’s team.
And Indian team’s head coach Roelant Oltmans isn’t exactly on cloud nine. “Look, I’m not a type of person who would get superb excited with such a Test series win or get deeply disappointed when we lose. I sees things in terms of taking the process forward.”
The 62-year-old former Dutch coach believes the most heartening aspect of the New Zealand tour was putting in place things the boys have been working on for some time now. “I think our boys have put in a lot of hard work in working out a defensive structure at our camp prior to leaving for New Zealand and what was good to see is that they executed their plans on the pitch.”
Does he have a fair idea of the boys he will be picking for the Rio Olympics? “There are still nine months for the Olympics and although a lot can change during this time, all I can say is that I know four or five guys who look good to make the Olympic cut provided they maintain the same form and intensity till the Olympics. I can’t reveal those names for sure,” a grinning Oltmans observes.
There is always a line of thinking that the Indian team appear good to beat teams like 5th ranked England, 6th ranked Argentina and 7th ranked New Zealand. Oltmans offers his perspective: “I have always said that breaking into the top-six won’t happen overnight – it’s all part of the process and now I can say we are close to reaching there. Of course, it will take time before we have the measure of the top four – Netherlands, Australia, Germany and Belgium. We must remember that in order to win medals in major events we have to beat these top sides.”
Since the 2012 London Olympics, the Indian team have hit the hard yards and have steadily moved up in rankings from being outside the top ten and are now seen as one of the improved sides in world hockey. “I don’t think there is any team that will not take us seriously. It is not case of just lesser teams only – even the top sides take us seriously,” he says. One hopes the New Zealand Test series win will serve as a springboard for the national team for the future.
