“We were outsmarted”- Head coach Janneke Schopman on India's loss to USA at the FIH Olympic Qualifiers
India's campaign at the FIH Olympic Qualifiers on home ground got off to a shaky start as they lost by a solitary goal against the United States.
The team missed multiple penalty corners and looked out of sorts in general. For India, having missed the chance to qualify for Paris at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, the ongoing event in Ranchi is the last shot at booking themselves a berth at the Games.
Going into this match, India lacked a a few of their experienced players and were on the field with a slightly watered down squad. Speaking on their loss at the post-match press conference, head coach Janneke Schopman said:
“I know we are a good team, we weren’t the lesser team even though we lost. We were outsmarted. We created chances but did not have composure and confidence on the ball that I am used to seeing in training and in matches previously.”
Schopman was also of the opinion that the Indian team didn't play to their strengths in the match, opting to hit long balls into the circle when they should have been playing short.
“We have to be better. I don’t think we lost to ourselves. USA put up a good fight but I feel that we didn’t play to our strength and what typically works for us. We need to revisit that and look at what works for us. We have to be a little bit smarter and understand what the game needs, where is the space and what is our strength.”
Janneke Schopman on India's lack of penalty corner conversions at the FIH Olympic Qualifiers
Meanwhile, as India and US battled it out in Ranchi for their first match of the FIH Olympic Qualifiers, the home team's lack of penalty corner conversions was glaringy obvious.
The Savita Punia-led side missed as many as seven opportunities over the course of the 60 minutes, showing India's lack of expertise in the department. Speaking on India's penalty corner woes, Schopman said at the same press conference:
“Look, I also would have liked to score (from penalty corners). I think we really played two really good PCs but for some reason we did not execute it right.”
The coach took responsibility for the missed opportunities, saying that she made some poor subbing choices.
“I will say that is the problem because at one point we didn’t have people on the pitch for PCs and that is a subbing mistake, that is my mistake.”
India will next take on New Zealand at the FIH Olympic Qualifiers and fans would hope to see a turnaround in the team's fortunes.