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Asia Cup hockey fixtures revised

Baljit Singh Dhillon, the newly-appointed skipper of the Indian hockey team, and coach Vasudevan Bhaskaran today said they were looking forward to a good performance in the Asia Cup tournament, at Kuala Lumpur from Thursday.

Talking to newsmen on the eve of the team's departure, Bhaskaran said the boys have been told to play keeping in mind the objective of qualifying for the World Cup.

"This tournament is as good as the Olympics. The captain and the players have worked hard during the month-long camp at Bangalore," Bhaskaran said.

Asked about the balance in the team, he said: "It's quite good, with emphasis on youth and experience. This outing will be a test for young medios Bimal Lakra and Shamsuz Zoha. Bimal is solid, but he needs a bit of exposure, while Shamshuz is good."

Bhaskaran said the services of linkman Mohammad Riaz, who is nursing an injury, will be sorely missed.

Dhillon, who spoke briefly in Hindi, said captaincy will not bring about any pressure on his performance as commonly believed.

"I will do my best," he declared.

"In the camp the emphasis was on raising the fitness level of players and on how to play when not in possession of the ball and while having the ball," he added.

About Dhillon's fitness, Bhaskaran said he has fully recovered and the doctors have cleared him to play.

Asked about the expectations from the team, Indian Hockey Federation (IHF) secretary K Jyothikumaran, who will accompany the team as manager, disclosed that the IHF spent a lot of time discussing the fitness level of the every member of the team.

"We have a bright chance and I hope we will qualify for the World Cup."

Asked whether Bhaskaran will continue as the coach till the Sydney Olympics, Jyothikumaran parried the question, saying, "We will see after the Asia Cup."

He said after the four-nation tournament, which follows the Asia Cup, the IHF will pick 20 probables to select the team for the Sydney Olympics.

The fixtures for the 5th men's Asia Cup 1999, to held at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil from November 18-28, have been revised following the withdrawal of Kazakhstan.

Pool B remains the same with Korea, Pakistan, China, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, while Pool A has India, Japan, Malaysia and Hong Kong.

The fixtures are as follows:
Nov 18: India vs Japan; Sri Lanka vs China
Nov 19: Bangladesh vs Korea; Malaysia vs Hong Kong; Pakistan vs Sri Lanka
Nov 20: China vs Bangladesh; India vs Malaysia
Nov 21: Korea vs Sri Lanka; Pakistan vs China
Nov 22: Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka; Malaysia vs Japan; India vs Hong Kong
Nov 23: China vs Korea; Pakistan vs Bangladesh
Nov 24: Japan vs Hong Kong; Korea vs Pakistan
Nov 25: REST DAY
Nov 26: Classification matches.
Nov 27: Classification matches.
Nov 28: Classification for third and fourth places.
Nov 28: FINAL.