India’s star hockey player Sardara Singh, who recently made his way into the World XI team for the second time, says that Indian team is all prepared for the Olympic qualifiers and that the players are confident enough to book their berth to the London Olympics. In an interview with Rajorshi Moitra of Indian Sports News, Sardara talks about the team’s progress, its confidence and its preparation for the Olympic qualifiers. Excerpts:

ISN: How is the team shaping up and what are your strategies for the upcoming Olympic qualifiers?
Sardara: We are enjoying our practice sessions. Everything is going good and the team is coming up really well.  We do our practice in two shifts and as far as strategy is concern, there is no particular planning as such. We just want to perform well and qualify for the London Olympics. Michael Nobbs as a coach is great background support and he is helping us a lot and having said that he is also motivating every players.

ISN: Are you all confident enough to book a berth to London Olympics?
Sardara: To us every match is important and we play with a motive to win. The coming qualifiers is very important for us and we are hoping to win every match with a good margin. Yes we are confident but we are not over confident. We are gaining more faith in ourselves with each passing day. We are not targeting any particular team. To us every team has a potential to play good hockey and so do we.

ISN: But will the 2008 qualifiers come to haunt you all this time?
Sardara: We are not taking any pressure on us. What has happened in the past is past. We really don’t care. What matters is how we do in the upcoming matches. Players are putting up their 100 per cent and we will surely make it this time. Winning and losing are part and parcel of game.

ISN: What is yours strategy regarding the five Test series against South Africa?
Sardara: Only to focus on the game. We will have to make sure that we don’t give any short corner goal to the opponent. South Africa is a good side and we have to play some good hockey so that we can dominate the opponent and win the match.     

ISN: According to Michael Nobbs, Indian team is playing more of attacking hockey now?
Sardara: Michael Nobbs has changed our game style and nowadays we focusing more on attacking hockey. It will lead us in scoring more goals. Our speed has increased a lot and we can really give tough fight to the opponents. That doesn’t mean we are only playing attacking hockey. We are also playing our natural game, as we have portrayed in the past.

ISN: What is your opinion about your fitness training coach?
Sardara: Having David John as trainer has been a great support. Every player is fit and strong. Players have gone through several camps and they are showing good results.  As we are playing attacking hockey, fitness plays a vital role. It will equally help us in scoring many goals.

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