India look to keep tempo up against Spain

Bhubaneswar, October 29

The Indian men’s hockey team will aim for a disciplined effort when it takes on Spain in the FIH Pro League here tomorrow.

India produced a great fightback in their opener against New Zealand yesterday, rallying from 1-3 down to eke out a 4-3 win. The hosts will be eager to carry forward the momentum.

But it won’t be easy against Spain as in the previous season, India had lost 3-5 to the same opponents in the second match of the double-leg tie after registering a 5-4 victory in the opening game.

India’s chief coach Graham Reid said his team can’t afford a drop in momentum during the match. “Spain is a strong side and has the ability to bounce back from any situation. It’s important for us to keep up the tempo in all quarters and not drop the momentum at any point in the match,” Reid said. “It’s never easy to bounce back from a situation that we were in against New Zealand but it shows the team’s fighting spirit,” he added.