Asian Champions Trophy: India face Pakistan with aim of avoiding laxity, clinch top spot

India are already through to the semi-finals of the Asian Champions Trophy with three wins and a draw. The last game is a mere formality before the last-four stage. But it wouldn’t allow India to sit down and relax for it comes against arch-rivals Pakistan and weeks before the all-important Asian Games. India have been unbeaten in the tournament and occupy the top spot. Pakistan, on the other hand, are fifth in the standings after one win, two draws and a defeat with their semi-final hopes depending on this fixture. If Pakistan lose, they would have to hope China beat Japan or Japan to win by a small margin. India and Pakistan, both three-time champions of the Asian Champions Trophy, are differently placed in their current stature in world hockey. India are ranked fourth while Pakistan are well below in 16th after years of political turmoil and financial disarray. Men in Green failed to qualify for two consecutive Olympics (2016 and 2020) and the 2023 World Cup. Read | India vs Pakistan hockey: Head-to-head, time, TV channel, live streaming For India, the focus will be on tightening the defense with penalty corner conversions seeing an uptick in the four matches. “We still need to work defensively and not give away silly PCs. We need to tackle better inside and do most of the tackling outside the box,” said Harmanpreet Singh. For Pakistan, the challenge will be in finishing the chances created. Another external task will be in keeping the crowd reaction at bay. “We will need to teach our young lads (about handling the crowd pressure) who are playing here for the first time,” said Pakistan’s stand-in head coach Muhammad Saqlain. “If you can close your ears and focus on the game, we surely can play good hockey. Also, if both the teams play good hockey, it would be a great achievement for Asian hockey.” ‘India not playing structural hockey’ Pakistan coach Saqlain argued his team is playing structural hockey while India are focusing more on counter-attacks and putting their fitness to use. “India is not playing structural hockey, but Pakistan is. India is simply playing over fitness,” Saqlain said. “Structural hockey is played by Korea and Japan. India has been playing behind the ball mostly and relying mainly on counter-attacking,” he added. “There are still some drawbacks in Indian hockey team as they drew against Japan. Although they played emphatically against Malaysia, South Korea did not allow them to play freely. We will try our best to stop them,” he said. “I feel India is following Australia’s pattern of hockey in this tournament begin strongly and finish the game early. The first quarter would be crucial. We will need to be patient,” he remarked. On their playing style, India captain Harmanpreet said it made sense to stick to the direct shot approach with penalty corners since it was working. Meanwhile in regular play, India have done well with a half-court tactic during games as it is something they’ve worked on in camp. “As far as the PC is concerned, we are not doing much variation to it and mostly going for a direct shot. I think we can use it during the Asian Games. “It’s important for the drag-flicker to analyse the defenders rushing in. So, it’s good learning for us ahead of a major competition,” said Harmanpreet, a drag-flicker himself. “We worked a lot on this (half-court) and we got quite a good result from it. We wait to counter-attack since we are well-known for it. So, I am glad that we are doing well in it, and we are continuously working on how we get better at it. “There is always room for improvement. We struggled in the opening two games as we couldn’t finish them properly. But we have been clicking in the last couple of matches. We need to convert our chances quickly, besides maintaining the pressure on the opponent and not give away easy chances,” he said. ‘We should play a lot more against each other’ More matches between the two neighbours will only between both sides, argued Harmanpreet. Since their first meeting at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics, Pakistan have won 82 games compared to India’s 64 with 32 matches ending in a draw across 178 matches. In major tournaments, Pakistan have not beaten India since the South Asian Games in 2016. “Matches are important for any team. If we play more matches together, it will surely help us and Asian hockey as a whole. But, it all depends on the situation, and I feel we should play a lot more against each other,” Harmanpreet said. Asked why the rivalry between the two sides has become less intense as compared to earlier times, Harmanpreet said, “It (the rivalry) has become a lot more different now. Both were very good teams back then. But it’s not that we are winning easily against them (now). “They have the same mentality, playing styles are same and they also play attacking hockey.” Pakistan coach Saqlain says the young squad has in it to surprise the hosts. “It’s been quite some time since Pakistan beat India in a competitive hockey game. This is a young side consisting of 14 players who have never faced India before,” Saqlain said. “There is win or loss in every game. While we have a young team, India has a far better squad and have the upper hand. India’s penalty corner is their biggest advantage, which is the best in the world,” he said. “If we can defend similarly and somehow block India from scoring in the opening quarter, we have a good chance of beating them. We can definitely surprise India,” Saqlain added. Pakistan captain Umar Bhutta urged the young side to keep their nerves in check. “India-Pakistan matches are generally aggressive. The team which will control its aggression better, will perform the best. Despite having a young side who lack enough experience, they are excited for this tie and will give their best,” Bhutta said. “I have been asking them to control their nerves during this match, thanks to my experience of having played India before.”