I want to bring glory back to Indian hockey: New skipper PR Sreejesh

New Delhi: While many believe sacking Sardar Singh ahead of Rio Olympics wasn't a right move by Hockey India (HI), new skipper PR Sreejesh is confident of bringing glory days back to India's national sport.

Sreejesh, who has been one of the pillars of Indian hockey in the last several years, was appointed as skipper of the men's hockey team on Tuesday.

Speaking to CNN News 18, the goalkeeper said that the players were aware of what happened at the 2012 London Olympics and determined to put a good show at upcoming Rio Games.

The Indian men's hockey team put on the worst ever show at an Olympic event in 2012 after they finished at the bottom among all teams (12th position).

Sreejesh added that the pain of the loss at London Olympics made him a better player and he now wants to bring glory back for Indian hockey.

Meanwhile, Indian hockey team's chief coach and High Performance Director Roelant Oltmans said the move to relieve Sardar from captaincy was purely taken to free him from excess responsibilities.

"The philosophy behind changing the captain is that we felt people need to take more responsibilities on the pitch and off the pitch. Sardar was taking too much responsibilities because of which he was not performing at the level that is expected of him," Oltmans told reporters.