India need to tighten defense ahead of Ned clash

Antwerp (Belgium): The Indian women's hockey team needs to plug the gaps in its defensive structure when going into attack, ahead of their quarterfinal clash against reigning World Cup and Olympic champions The Netherlands in the World League Semifinals here.

In their enthusiasm, the Indian eves are allowing the defensive structure to fall apart when going into the attack and such lapses could prove terribly expensive against The Netherlands.

The disruption of structure is being cited as the cause of Indian eves conceding a large number of penalty corners, the count going to 10 in the last outing against World Cup silver medalists Australia on Saturday.

India women's team coach, Mathias Ahrens says that the crux of the problem is the defensive structure falling apart when too many players move into the rival territory.

"When we attack, in the turnover, we keep getting caught off-guard in defence," says coach Mathias Ahrens, conceding that the excessive number of penalty corners was a worry for the team management.

"It's a very old story of no counter-attack control when attacking. It's a mental thing. The players need a change of outlook. It is in our control of events that we need to improve immediately. We need to learn to defend deep in our territory.

"Against Australia, there were as many as eight Indian players in the rival territory on one occasion. That's very dangerous and makes us the target for counter-attacks," the coach said.

Indian girls put up a valiant performance in the 2-4 loss to Australia, reigniting the aspiration of making it to the 2016 Olympic Games even though they are drawn to play The Netherlands at the KHC Dragons Stadium.

"We may not have got an ideal quarterfinal draw, but the performance against Australia shows we can pose a threat to The Netherlands," said Ahrens.

It has been 25 years since Indian women's team made an Olympic appearance in 1980.

The Indian women's team set off from New Delhi earlier this month with a top-5 position in their mind. The hopes were slightly dimmed when the loss to Belgium denied India a good quarterfinal draw, but the display against Australia has reinforced the belief.

"On Tuesday, facing The Netherlands is our first chance," says coach Ahrens.

A shock victory over the Dutch would virtually place India in the Olympic lineup. But there is a second chance for teams who lose the quarterfinals.

The next chance will come on Thursday, when the semifinals or playoffs for the fifth to eight positions take place.

India's strike-power has improved with the return of the Rani Rampal and Vandana Katariya from injury-forced absence.

With captain Ritu Rani and Deepika adeptly playing the play-makers, the Indian team has shown it is capable of being on the same pitch as top-ranked teams.

Deepika left the arena with a bandaged arm after receiving a nasty blow during the Saturday match.

Relieved that there was no fracture, the Indian team is hopeful that she plays the knock-out round.

"Deepika has been a fine player. We need her on the pitch in every match," said Ahrens.

"India's own raids take too long to build up. When we turn over, we are not quite quick," said Ahrens, lamenting the fact that Indian girls give the rivals enough time to recover and regain the defensive positions.