India's 2009 European tour was planned for the hockey team to get the much-needed international exposure. As it turned out, it actually exposed India's trump card Sandeep Singh.
India's 2009 European tour was planned for the hockey team to get the much-needed international exposure. As it turned out, it actually exposed India's trump card Sandeep Singh.
And that helped Spain beat India 5-2 in the World Cup league game yesterday giving India's chances of making the semi-finals a serious jolt.
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Spaniards celebrate as Sandeep Singh walks past during their 5-2 win over India in the World Cup yesterday |
Spanish goalkeeper Francisco Cortes told MiD DAY after the match that he followed Singh closely ever since the drag-flicker showed his goal-scoring instincts during the three Tests Spain played against India during the European tour last year.
Of the three that were a part of the 12-Test series, India lost the first 2-8, won the second 1-0 and narrowly went down 4-5 in the third. Singh scored the only goal of the second game and also sounded the board in the last one. Both goals were from his lethal drag-flicks.
From then on, Cortes and the Spanish team have been following Singh's videotapes closely. "Sandeep played well against us in Spain and even beat me a couple of times. We knew Sandeep was going to be India's main drag-flicker in this World Cup, so our eyes were always on him. Personally, I've watched a number of videotapes to try and study his style. Thankfully for me, that helped today," Cortes said.
"Even before the match I watched his videos. Of course, you have to keep doing the right things and then you get lucky," a smiling Cortes said.
India managed to convert only one of the five penalty corners yesterday, with Cortes coming up with some brilliant saves.
Cortes, however, refused to believe that Singh's missed chances mean he is a lesser force now. "Today, I was watching the ball, and reached it. Some other day I won't be able to reach it and Sandeep will beat me. It's all about playing well on the day," added the 27-year-old custodian.
Cortes also emphasised that yesterday the pressure was on him to keep Sandeep out of the reckoning. "We had to win this match if we had any chance of making the semis. So, I told myself that I had to do well. And I knew that whenever Sandeep took a penalty corner, it was my job to save it," said Cortes, who admitted that the numerous hours of practice he put in only complemented his strategy to monitor Sandeep's drag-flick videos.
