Bharat Chetri, who captained the India side that won an Olympic berth speaks to Gaurav Jha of Indian Sports News about how tough the tournament was, how big the victory is, the chances India have in London and much more. EXCERPTS:
ISN: How big is this win for you?
Bharat: It’s a massive win not only for me but for the whole country. We have been working so hard for it. We tried everything and gave it our all to be in the situation that we are now. I can’t explain what I am feeling right now.
ISN: How important was it for you guys to be in the Olympics?
Bharat: It was a matter of life and death. After what happened in Beijing, it was important for us to win this tournament. It was very painful not play in Beijing and we knew that we cannot let that happen again. All the players knew it that there was no other option, apart from winning the tournament and as you can see, we did it.
ISN: What do you have to say about your team’s performance throughout the tournament?
Bharat: We played some exceptional hockey in the tournament. We wanted to win all the matches and that’s exactly what we have done. We wanted to beat every team that we play comprehensively to show the rest of the world that we belong to the Olympics.
ISN: Before the tournament there were a lot of talk about the team selection, what do you have to say about that?
Bharat: Yeah, before the tournament everyone was criticizing our team selection. I said before the tournament as well that I believe in the team that the selectors have picked and we will perform well. But no one believed that. Now the tournament is over and the result is for everyone to see. We proved it to everyone that our selection was right and the best team was fielded.
ISN: What do you have to say about Sandeep Singh and the player of the tournament Sardar Singh?
Bharat: Both these players are exceptional and are gifted players. Sandeep before the tournament said that he wanted to score 12 goals; it’s good for us that he scored 16 goals. He is one of the best drag-flicker in the world and he showed why. Some of the goals he struck were unstoppable. What do I say about Sardar, I am very lucky to have a player like him in our squad. He may not have a huge number of goals in his kitty, but he is the main reason why the other players have scored so many goals. He maneuvers the ball magnificently and his passing and control is awesome.
ISN: What can we expect from our hockey team in London?
Bharat: We are not going their just to participate. We are going there to win a medal for our country. We know that the Olympics will be much tougher than the Olympic qualifiers as the best teams will participate there. We are looking in good form and the way that we are playing I am very hopeful that the hockey team will deliver what the people want from them.
