Staying calm in crunch situations will be key in Olympics: Indian hockey forward Navneet Kaur

By PTI

BENGALURU: Indian women hockey players have all the skills to compete against the world’s best but they will need to stay calm and take the right decisions in crunch situations to be able to do well during the upcoming Olympics, feels forward Navneet Kaur.

Kaur, who has played 79 matches for India, said the team should try to cut down on the errors during the Tokyo Olympics which opens on July 23.

“We all have the skills and talent to take on the best in the world. However, making key decisions on the pitch is a crucial factor for any side. Therefore, it will be very important for us to stay calm during crunch situations,” she said.

“Even one wrong pass could hurt us deeply, therefore, we have to ensure that we are thinking clearly and not making too many unforced errors on the pitch during the Olympics,” said Kaur.

The 25-year-old said the Indian team management is ensuring that all players are clear about their roles on the pitch.

“There should be no confusion amongst the players on game day. The coaches and captain have been ensuring that everyone knows about their roles and how they can execute their plans so that we coordinate well on the pitch during matches.

“The Olympics is going to be a big challenge for us, and we have to play at our absolute best to garner good results,” said the forward in a release.

Talking about the Indian team’s training sessions, Kaur said, “We are having high-intensity training at the moment. We try to simulate match situations during practice and give everything we have during training sessions.

“We are very confident about our abilities and it’s just about executing our plans properly on game day. If we play to our potential, we will surely do very well in Tokyo.”