Manpreet Singh and his men will play their first CWG game against Ghana on 31 July 2022
Indian Men’s Hockey Team Captain Manpreet Singh and Chief Coach Graham Reid on Wednesday, 27 July 2022, said that they are not burdened by the expectations of the fans as they prepare for their tournament opener against Ghana on Sunday, July 31, 2022.
The National side reached Birmingham on Saturday, 23 July 2022 for the 12th edition of the Commonwealth Games (CWG) and ever since their arrival they have been training vigorously as they aim for a podium finish in the colossal event.
First up, the Indian Hockey Captain , Manpreet Singh speaks about the mindset that he and the players have had post the Tokyo lympics Succsess and what they aim for at the CWG 2022.
“Our main aim at the Commonwealth Games 2022 is to win a medal. We along with the inputs of our Coach Graham Reid have set ourselves some targets.”
“We are preparing on how we will be able to achieve these targets. Our first and foremost aim is to achieve the targets that we have set for ourselves .”
“We need to give our 100% in each match, top the pool table, win the matches to reach the grand finale.”
“As for our journey since the Olympic, it’s been an amazing one. We have performed well in both, the Pro League as well as the Asian Champions Trophy.”
“The one important thing to focus on is that our coach gave those players, who have been around for a while, to be a part of the playing XI and they performed well.”
“As for the pro League, we got to see some new and talented faces play at the highest of level in the most intense of matches. Overall, our journey since our triumph has been a good one and hopefully it continues long.:
When asked about the expectations of the Indian hockey fans during a virtual press conference, Reid said,
“I must say, I don’t think that anyone’s expectations of us are more than that of our own expectations. We really have high expectations of what we expect from ourselves and also from each other. So, yes, we are not weighed down by these expectations. “
The Chief Coach added,
“Of course, we cannot do much about the external expectation, but we can do something about our own expectations and that’s what we do as it keeps the pressure on us but it’s in a good way because we are the ones that can control that.”
Meanwhile, Manpreet Singh, who is set to make his 300th appearance for India in the CWG tournament opener against Ghana said,
“I am really glad to have played 299 games for India. I am excited about it but my focus at the moment is on the game against Ghana and the team and I am not that concerned about the personal milestone.”
Speaking about the fans’ expectations, Manpreet said,
“Yes, we know that fans have expectations from us that we will win a medal here. We discussed the same before arriving here that if our focus is on winning a medal, we will eventually be victorious in our efforts but we need to work on it first. We want to do our best in every single game, we are not going to take any team lightly and yes our final goal is to win a medal here.”
Indian Team will open their campaign against Ghana on Saturday, 31 July 2022 at 2030 hrs IST. The match between India and Ghana will be telecasted on Sony Ten 3, Sony Six and on Sony LIV OTT platform.
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