Indian team will be under pressure against New Zealand: Graham Reid
New Zealand have nothing to lose in the knockout ‘crossover’ match of the FIH Men’s World Cup, which will put the home team under pressure, Indian team head coach Graham Reid said on Saturday. India put up a dismal 4-2 win against debutants Wales, earning them a crossover match on Sunday instead of a direct quarter-final berth. The team could have directly reached the last eight by topping Group D.
Now if the Indian team defeats New Zealand, they will face defending champions Belgium in the quarterfinals. “From New Zealand’s point of view, they have got nothing to lose and the pressure will be on us,” Reid said at the pre-match press conference. I expect our team to persevere and as I have said before, if we play at our best, we can beat any team in the world. ,
He said, “I am Australian and I know that New Zealand is always difficult to beat and we (India) have full respect for them. I am also very confident that we will do our job (winning matches) well. India had beaten New Zealand twice at the Kalinga Stadium in Pro League matches a few months back and Reid will hope that the results continue. He said, “We had defeated them twice then. Also, our defensive unit has improved a lot since then. That’s why we are expecting to win the match. Lack of ‘finishing’ was one of the main issues for India in the three pool matches. Asked about this, Reid said, “I agree that we were behind in finishing the chances we created.” But I would have been more worried if we were not able to create chances. I am sure we will do better in this too.
