The international hockey federation (FIH) offers several routes to qualify for Blue Riband tournaments like the World Cup and the Summer Olympics.
At this stage, the Indian men’s hockey team, having finished second-last among nine teams in the recently concluded FIH Pro League 2024-25, are not looking too far ahead and focusing on the upcoming Asia Cup in Bihar, said skipper Harmanpreet Singh in an exclusive interview to Olympics.com.
To cut a long story short, the Indian hockey team has two objectives in front of them. First, to dethrone the Republic of Korea in home conditions and win the Asia Cup, which will be played from August 27 to September 7. Victory will ensure a berth in the FIH World Cup in the Netherlands and Belgium in 2026.
Second, find a balanced squad for the Asian Games next year. Gold in Aichi-Nagoya in Japan will give India a berth at the LA 2028 Olympics.
Indian hockey seems to be at an exploratory stage. “The FIH Pro League has been a lesson. We have lost matches by narrow margins. If we can’t defend well and score goals, we will get punished,” said Harmanpreet, adding that only a good “balance” will give the results India desires. India won six and lost 10 matches in the FIH Pro League 2024-25.
Having conceded (38 goals) more than they scored (34) at the FIH Pro League, questions about India’s defence line and the solidity of goalkeeping in the post-PR Sreejesh era are bound to surface and they did so during the conversation with Harmanpreet at India’s training camp at the Sports Authority of India’s high-performance centre in Bengaluru.
“Sreejesh has been one of the world’s best goalkeepers but we have faith in the current crop. We have to own up as a team. The forward line, midfield and the defence are collectively responsible for the team’s success or failure. We certainly have to be tighter in defence and not allow soft goals,” said Harmanpreet.
In the FIH Pro League 2023-24 season, India scored 38 goals and conceded three fewer to finish seventh among nine countries.
India have generally relied on a counterattacking strategy to surprise the opposition. While the inclusion of young players should have helped raise the overall stamina level, Harmanpreet pointed out that consistency in focus and intensity in all four quarters needs to be improved.
“While we have lost matches by close margins, performance-wise, we are struggling a bit in the third quarter. We made some strategic changes to play our counterattacking game but we have to have the energy to convert the opportunities. We have to keep these things in mind and be more impactful in the next tournament.
“Like we start very well, we should be able to finish equally well. We trained very hard in the camps but seven straight defeats in the FIH Pro League were tough. Having said that, it was a great learning that should help us in the future,” said Harmanpreet.
The 29-year-old Indian captain remains the biggest hope in the side. In the FIH Pro League, Harmanpreet missed five matches due to injury and his absence was felt. Five of the seven straight defeats came at that stage.
Harmanpreet, who was the top scorer in the Paris 2024 Olympics, was India’s best man (overall joint 10th) in the Pro League with six goals, four from penalty corners and two from penalty strokes. By contrast, 35-year-old Tom Boon of Belgium was the League’s highest scorer with 21 goals – 13 field goals, six from PCs and two from the spot.
“Injuries are part of the game. When the ball is coming, you must position your body to defend and protect the goal. So I will take the injuries, no matter how frustrating they are. Last match against Belgium, I got a chance to come back and we finished on a winning note (4-3),” said Harmanpreet.
For now, all attention is on the Asia Cup in Rajgir in Bihar. It remains to be seen if India will play its usual “full press” game or alter the Pro League strategy to inject more balance and remain impact throughout the four quarters.