The star Indian hockey player PR Sreejesh revealed the team's plans and preparations on the eve of their opening game at the Paris Olympics 2024 on Friday. The veteran goalkeeper talked about India's chances to tackle the group of death and secure an early quarter-final berth while speaking exclusively to India TV reporter Samip Rajguru.
The 36-year-old Sreejesh was part of the Indian team that won the memorable bronze in the Tokyo Olympics and is set to retire after the Paris Games. India men's hockey team will begin their campaign against New Zealand on Saturday and face the likes of giant teams Australia and Belgium in Group B.
Sreejesh played a crucial role in India's success in the 2020 games and talked about the importance of a positive start to India's campaign in the 33rd Summer Games. Sreejesh revealed that India are looking to focus on one game at a time as India face New Zealand, Argentina and Ireland before taking on big teams.
"We are playing five games in pool stages and the team winning most games will top the group," PR Sreejesh told India TV's Samip Rajguru. "The important thing is to secure quarter-final qualification first and we will take games against New Zealand, Argentina, and Ireland seriously. We need to capitalise on maximum points before facing Australia and Belgium as the latter two played in the 2020 final.
"It will be tough games against Australia and Belgium so we need a strong start to the campaign to gain some rhythm. Ultimately the real challenge starts in the quarter-finals but right now we are focusing on one game at a time and are looking to perform strong against New Zealand tomorrow."
India's biggest challenge to earn a quarter-final berth will be overcoming Belgium and Australia, ranking comparatively higher than India in the FIH World Rankings. When asked about India's plans to tackle these two giants, Sreejesh pointed out the importance of a strong defence and making fewer mistakes to keep the opponents in check.
"These [Australia and Belgium] are not big teams but they do punish their opponents for each mistake. The basic rule to overcome these giants is to not make mistakes and focus on a strong defence as they focus on a physically aggressive play."
