A day after their ugly row on Monday, Indian hockey chief coach Rajinder Singh and captain Dhanraj Pillay were in a conciliatory mood and tried to play down the incident that had marred the euphoria of the team's maiden Asia Cup triumph.

Defending his stand, Rajinder Singh said, "Whatever I did was in the best interests of the team." Pillay said the matter was best forgotten.

"As a coach I have a right over the players, but a captain is also responsible for the team," Singh told reporters in Lucknow at a function organised by team sponsors Sahara India.

On the team's victory, Singh said it was made possible by team work and discipline. The former penalty corner ace insisted that he enjoys "a very good relationship" with the team members. "They are like my sons," he said.

Pillay, while urging reporters not to dwell too much on the incident, said, "No one [in the media] published the photograph showing me offering a cake to the coach."