Paris Olympics: Sreejesh’s teammates to bank on his cusswords against Germany

The cusswords are usually known to be a part of the athletes’ vocabulary to keep their adrenalin rush going – and the Indian hockey team’s rock P.R. Sreejesh is a firm believer in such a theory. Hence, Harmanpreet Singh & Co can brace for more verbal volleys from him at the back when India take on powerhouse Germany in their semi-final of Paris Olympics on Tuesday night (10.30 pm IST).

Incidentally, they were the same opponents India prevailed upon in the bronze medal play-off match three years back in Tokyo and the Germans are expected to come back hard at them. However, after staying in the game despite being down to 10 men for nearly 45 minutes and then prevailing in the shootout against Great Britain in the quarter-finals, this Indian team will tend to believe that impossible is nothing.

The day after Sreejesh’s Houdini Act in the quarter-finals saved the day for his team, the talk in the dressing room had been about how they need to rise to the occasion to give a fitting send-off to one of the finest goalkeepers of this generation. Sreejesh’s cusswords, meanwhile, are the vocal tonic that the teammates who swear by him cannot do without.  “Those words keep them on their toes. Those gaalis are gaana for them. It’s a motivation,” a smiling Sreejesh said on Sunday.

Manpreet Singh, captain of the team in Tokyo and who like Sreejesh is also playing his fourth Olympics, told the media jokingly: “When Sreejesh does not use the cusswords from the goal, I get nervous. As if something is wrong. When those cusswords come thick and fast, I know we are doing well.”

Craig Fulton, the South African coach who is being credited with the current turnaround of the team after their failure in the FIH Men’s World Cup at home last year, expanded on Sreejesh’s role further. “A man down so early in the match, we needed a Plan B. We’ve been talking about defence for the last 14 months and we dug deep and Sree (Sreejesh) was immense. When you talk about defence, it’s also about showing your love for your teammate by covering him... helping him. And Sree did that for us and we did that for him,” Fulton said.

In the shootout, Sreejesh anticipated his rival’s shot very well, diving to his right to keep the ball out. “Shootout... shootout is a normal thing for a goalkeeper. We train a lot.” Sreejesh explained. “There are two ways...,” he said, giving a glimpse of what goes through his mind, before adding, “Just kill the time and then try to make a save. The moment you kill the time, pressure goes on to the opposition and they try something wrong. Also, we need support from the team. Today we converted all four.”

 India, currently ranked fifth, finished second in the group stages with three wins in five matches. Harmanpreet, India’s top goalscorer at Tokyo 2020 en route to a bronze, is once again leading the attack with seven goals in six matches.

However, they will be without the services of defender and first rusher Amit Rohidas in the Germany game as he is serving a one-match ban for an offence during the game against Great Britain. The FIH has, on Monday, turned down India’s appeal to waive the suspension – which means the team will have only 15 men on their rolls to choose from.