7-0 loss to Australia has given India's hockey team food for thought

Young India mens hockey team forward Abhishek has conceded that the 07 thrashing at the hands of Australia in the final at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games was a lesson that the side had to improve upon in trainingIndias hopes of clinching their maiden CWG hockey gold remained a dream as they were soundly thrashed in the quadrennial showpiece even as Australia went on to clinch a recordextending seventh CWG goldEven though the final against Australia did not go our way we learned a lot from the match and have to improve upon in training opined Abhishek on FridayThe forward who is set to turn 23 on August 15 started in all six games at the Commonwealth Games and remained an everpresent threat inside the oppositions defence as India settled for silver He believes the tournament was a big learning experience for himAbhishek made his senior India debut earlier this year when the team travelled to South Africa for the FIH Pro League 202122 matches in February He played 14 matches during the Pro League and displayed consistent performances on the back of which he was selected in the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games squadSpeaking about his experiences of performing on the big stage Abhishek who also scored two goals at the Games said It was quite a memorable experience for me to perform on such a big stage I learned a lot about my game during the tournament and understood areas where I can improve uponOur chief coach Graham Reid had already told me before in training sessions to enjoy the games and to not take too much pressure This advice really helped me at Commonwealth Games 2022 as I was able to focus on my natural game and was able to play freely Abhishek addedAlso Read Loss in the Commonwealth Games final is hard to digestOn his performance at CWG Abhishek said My teammates and coaches told me I performed well considering it was my first major tournament of such scale There are still a few areas where I have to improve upon and the Commonwealth Games 2022 experience has motivated me to work even harder to fulfil those shortcomingsIndia performed brilliantly throughout the tournament until they clashed with Australia The scored an 110 win against Ghana in their opening Pool B match With a 44 draw against England followed by an 80 win over Canada and a 41 win over Wales India booked a spot in the semifinal where they defeated South Africa 32 to reach the finalOn the teams performance he said We performed as a team throughout the competition despite facing tough opponents Every match had a new challenge for us and we were able to face it headonThe team will return to the coaching camp in Bengaluru on the August 29 and will begin preparation for the Pro League 202223 season which begins in October India are scheduled to play New Zealand and Spain at homeWe are eager to return to training and prepare for the upcoming competitions We want to improve as a team and with the World Cup next year everyone wants to be in the best shape and form in the coming months Abhishek addedThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever