Perfect launch pad

Chennai, August 13

The Asian Champions Trophy title triumph will “really count” as India set sights on the Asian Games gold in order to secure automatic qualification for the Paris Olympics, said head coach Craig Fulton.

India fought back from two goals down to eke out a 4-3 win over Malaysia in the final to claim their fourth ACT title here on Saturday.

With the Hangzhou Asian Games scheduled to commence on September 23, Fulton was asked whether a thrilling final like this will help the side in the continental showpiece event.

“Finals are cagier, they never go smooth. It comes down to a moment or shootouts. So, it’s important to have a game like this because it really counts,” Fulton said.

“At the same time, it’s (ACT) not the Asian Games. So, our feet are firmly on the ground. But, if you said to me to win the Asian Games and lose this final, I would obviously vouch for winning the Games,” he added.

Fulton said the comeback story of the team had begun two months back. Asked about the biggest learning from this tournament, he said, “Not to have back-to-back tournaments; that would be a start.”

Back-to-back matches

Decoding India’s performance, Fulton, while giving due credit to Malaysia, said that coming into the final after a “high-quality” semifinal against Japan the previous day was not easy. India thrashed Japan 5-0 in the last-four stage.

“We had a really good game (against Malaysia). Also, against Japan in the semis, a high-quality match. To back that up is always hard. Malaysia raised their game and controlled the first half. We didn’t do badly but we were not a 100 per cent committed to what we were trying to do,” he said.

“We regrouped at half-time. All we needed was a goal to bounce back. And then, it was just a matter of time to equalise and try to get the winner,” he added.

Fulton gave credit to his boys for trusting each other when the chips were down. He added that fighting back from a two-goal deficit showed the true character of the side.

“You will find guys who trust each other and trust to get the job done. They feel confident about stepping up. After the first half, we decided to press, and the younger players stood up along with the senior players. The character of the team is great. It is a really important step because you need to know that you can come from behind, as it’s easy to play when you are up by two or three goals,” he said. — PTI

India return to No. 3 after two years

New Delhi: Giving them a big boost ahead of the Asian Games, India today rose to third place in the FIH rankings following their Asian Champions Trophy triumph. India (2771.35 points) jumped one place to third and went past England (2763.50 points) behind Netherlands (3095.90 points) and Belgium (2917.87 points). India had achieved a similar ranking in 2021 after securing a bronze in the Tokyo Olympics.

Australian teams seal Olympics berths

Lausanne: The Australian men and women became the first hockey teams to seal the qualification berths for next year’s Paris Olympic Games, joining hosts France in the mega event. The Australian teams came out on top against neighbours New Zealand at the Oceania Cup. agencies

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