FIH Olympic Qualifiers: Rupinder's quick fix for penalty misery

Penalty corners have been the Indian women's hockey team's Achilles heel for a while but it could well turn a corner in the upcoming FIH Olympic Qualifiers in Ranchi, says former men's team drag-flick star Rupinderpal Singh, who claims to have figured the problem in his short five-day training stint with the side.

Rupinder, who was one of the stars of India's historic bronze medal-winning effort at the Tokyo Olympics, quit international hockey in September 2021. Last month, he was brought in to help the women's side fix its penalty corner conversion woes ahead of the FIH Olympic Qualifiers beginning in Ranchi on Saturday.

After winning the Asian Champions Trophy here, the Indians had wasted plenty of penalty corners in the subsequent tournaments, including the Asian Games, where they missed Olympic qualification.

"In today's hockey, the penalty corner defence of all teams have become very strong. It's not like before," he told PTI in an interview ahead of the tournament in which India would need to finish inside top-three for a Paris ticket.

And to counter that, Rupinder advocated the classic 'offence is the best defence' approach.

"The most important thing for a drag-flicker is to understand and execute plans on how to beat the first rusher. So, we have worked on a few variations on how to beat the first rusher during the camp," he elaborated.

First rusher is the player mandated to run straight to the drag-flicker to block or deflect the stroke, when a penalty corner is taken.

"Gurjit (Kaur) and Deepika are very good drag-flickers and doing well. Both are experienced players. It depends on their planning on the day and how they execute that," Rupinder said.

The 33-year-old, regarded as one of the best drag-flickers of the country, represented India in 223 matches. Nicknamed 'Bob', Rupinder scored four crucial goals in Tokyo, including a penalty stroke in the third-place match against Germany.

Rupinder said rest is just focussing on the basics, which includes confident execution of team plans and presence of mind to find opportunities in active play.

"I didn't want to change their style but I worked on their thinking before the match and during match situations. I mainly worked on their basics. The focus entirely was on basics," he added.

He might have quit international hockey, but Rupinder hasn't given up hope of competing and wants to feature in the next Hockey India League, which is set to be revived later this year or early next year.

"I am still active although I have retired from international hockey. Recently I played in the Australian league and now, I am looking for opportunities in other leagues," he said.

"I hope to play in the HIL but it depends on many factors. It is up to the teams whether they choose me or not. But I am actively training, working on my fitness."

Rupinder, who has two Asian Games medals in his kitty -- a gold at the Incheon Games in 2014 and a bronze in the 2018 edition in Jakarta, is also actively involved in coaching.