India face must-win situation to qualify

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Sydney: Forced into a must-win situation, India have little option but to turn in their best display when they take the field against Spain in the fourth and most crucial Group 'B' match of their Olympic hockey competition on Saturday.

Lying in the third position with four points from three games, the Indians after their loss against South Korea were tense as the other two matches were underway on Thursday. A win for any of the teams would have made things tough for India, but they were lucky in that both matches ended as draws, and now all four major contenders for the two semi-final berths are bunched close together.

Where Australia and Korea have five points each, they will also be clashing with each other in the fourth match. India and Poland have four points each and India need to play Spain - two points - and Poland takes on Argentina, who have two points. With three points for a win and one for a draw, two wins even for Spain or Argentina could get them back into the running for a semis berth.

So it is imperative that India win not only against Spain, but also against Poland in the remaining two matches. India's track record against Spain is fairly good. Coach Vasudevan Baskaran, would carry fond memories of the 1980 Olympics final, where India defeated Spain 4-3 to win the last of their eight gold medals.

In fact, since then India has have even made the semis. At Los Angeles, India again got the better of Spaniards 4-3, while in 1992 Spain playing at home in Terassa beat India 2-0. However, in Atlanta India had things their way winning 3-1.

Spain's performance here has been patchy. They had one bad game against Poland, which they lost, by a big 1-4 margin, but against Australia they played well for a 2- 2 draw. In their first match, they had drawn with the Koreans.

Spain are seen as one of the major powers having finished second at Atlanta Olympics - despite the loss to India - and also the 1998 World Cup in Utrecht, Netherlands. They were also fifth in the European Championship last year and fourth in the Champions Trophy. Also, the Spaniards have a reputation of striking when they have their backs to the wall and their penalty corner conversions are their strength.

However, there is still an air of optimism in the Indian camp. Coach Baskaran said, "I am confident that India will qualify for the semis." Confronted by the media after the defeat against Korea, Baskaran, played it easy and said, "One defeat cannot take away the fact that we are playing good hockey. Our first two matches were very good. But, against Korea we had our share of chances which we failed to convert."

One of the things that the Indians need to be cautious about is fouls inside their striking circle. For giving away penalty corners to a team like Spain could be suicidal. In Pablo Amat Spain has a man, quite similar to the legendary Juan Amat, who could turn the course of a match within minutes.

After all how can Baskaran forget that, for Juan Amat in 1980 had struck three times, twice in quick succession towards the end to send jitters through the Indian camp at the Moscow Olympics final.

The Indians must be careful and not make the same mistakes they committed against Korea. Spain may not play as fast as the Koreans, but they are the fitter side. And the Indians admitted they have begun to feel the pace after their first three matches.

Spain are also good at counter-attacks and the players would need to fall back after every attack. On Thursday Spain had Australia on the rails before the hosts got away with a draw in a tense match.

The Indian team must come up with a strategy to find a way around if Dhanraj Pillay is as tightly marked as he was in the match against Korea. Pillay has acquired a reputation around the world for being a fine forward who can score from half chances.

But in this tournament he has also been helping others by creating chances, a sure sign of maturity and one who understands his responsibility which goes beyond his own talent.

Mukesh Kumar cannot afford to miss chances, and Sameer Dad and Baljit Dhillion will have to put in an extra bit. In midfield, Mohammed Riaz had a bad game against Korea, but he should shrug that off and make amends against Spain and Baljit Singh Saini will also need to contribute.

What could hamper India is the absence of bench strength. The substitutes, Sukhbir Singh Gill, Gagan Ajit Singh and Deepak Thakur have not really covered themselves with glory. So the first 11 will have to create the magic and do the trick.

Spain's forward line comprises Xavi Arnau, Pablo Amat and Juan Escarre and their defense is handled by veteran skipper, Kim Malgosa, besides two other experienced players, Jaime Santi Amat and Ramon Sala.

The Spanish coach, Toni Forrellat, has already declared, "We will go for an outright win." And that spells bad news for India, unless they can find the form they displayed against Australia and Argentina.

India Abroad News Service