Indian women's team coach exudes confidence

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 11. The coach of the Indian women's hockey team, Ajay Kumar Bansal, sounded confident about the team qualifying for the World Cup, possibly in an authoritative fashion with a semifinal entry, in the qualifying tournament to be held in France from September 17 to 30.

Reaching the capital along with the rest of the team for a final work-out at the Shivaji Stadium, which is supposed to be having the same poly-family turf as the bouncy surface in France, Bansal said that the preparation in the two-month camp in Patiala was satisfactory.

``We have a good combination of senior and junior players. All of them are very keen to prove their ability, and have been working hard'', said Bansal, on the eve of the team's departure.

``The girls are well prepared both physically and mentally. Except for two, everyone had played together on the tour of New Zealand and Australia in the first fortnight of June. There is understanding and camaraderie in the team, which is a good sign before the important assignment'', Bansal added.

The coach felt that a bunch of talented players in the forwardline - Jyoti Sunita Kullu, Sanghai Ibemhal Chanu, Neha Singh, Mamta Kharab, Surinder Kaur, Suraj Lata Devi and Manjinder Kaur - made it a difficult choice for him, and thus felt that finding goals should not be a problem.

``In the midfield, we have the world class Sita Gussain, who at 28 is much better than the others, as she is very sincere and professional in training. We have Sumrai Tete and Agnecia Lugun to support Sita. Actually, the forward and midfield are our strong points'', said Bansal.Amandeep Kaur and Suman Bala will form the last line of defence, before the goalkeepers, captain Tingoleima Chanu and Helen Mary, whom the coach argued, were equally competent.

With star forward Pritam Thakran just about coming back to training after child-birth, and others like Kamala Dalal and Marystella Tirkey out of contention following marriage, the coach felt he was having the best available team.

England, Ireland and host France are expected to be the main opponents for India in Pool `A', in which Uruguay, Kenya, Ukraine and Kazakhstan are the other members. Scotland, Belgium, US, Russia, Lithuania, Malaysia, Canada and Japan are the teams in Pool `B'.

``England is good, and we should be able to prove ourselves against the other teams. France and Ireland are also good, but are beatable. We have the fitness to make the maximum of our superior skills, and that should give us the edge. Our aim is to make the semifinal, and we are confident of achieving it, with a bit of luck in our favour to complement our efforts. Anyway, this team will definitely qualify'', said Bansal.

The coach stressed that the Afro-Asian Games would actually be a tougher challenge for the Indian women's team. The preparation could have been better, had the Indian team been able to compete in the five-nation tournament in Lithuania last month as planned.

``The team could not get clearance, but we have practised hard, by playing against boys teams. The girls are quite eager to prove their worth. Once we acclimatise to the conditions with practice matches against Russia and one or two other teams, we start the tournament with a light match against Uruguay on the 17th. We hope to build from there'', said Bansal.

After the disappointment of the Olympic qualifier, when the team without four of its main players hit the bottom of the ladder, there is purpose in the strides of the Indian women players as they pull their weight together.

It remains to be seen how well they translate their skill, fitness and hunger into good results in France.

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