We are deep into the Hockey World Cup, standing at the doorstep of the knockout stage. As expected, the Asian teams, barring Korea, have underperformed; being beaten by lesser rated teams that managed to perform cohesively. The home team has been humbled in its previous two matches by Australia and Spain, two teams that it used to match stick for stick a decade ago. As this blog is being written, it plays England, for pride and happy memories.
From the looks, the round robin stage seems to have done justice to itself by sifting through the teams, giving a pool of teams that go into the next stage with almost equal honours. Individual brilliance has been unable to leave its mark so far, with the indomitable Pakistani drag flicker Sohail Abbas conceding that his team and himself did not perform well enough to make a difference. While Korea and Australia relied on their fast paced game and spontaneous counter attacks, teams like England have set up their goals beautifully.
The venue has lived up to its hype and the game's demands. It also seems like the tourney is a hit among the locals, which is a good sign for the game in a country forever crazy about the other gentleman's game.
From the looks, the round robin stage seems to have done justice to itself by sifting through the teams, giving a pool of teams that go into the next stage with almost equal honours. Individual brilliance has been unable to leave its mark so far, with the indomitable Pakistani drag flicker Sohail Abbas conceding that his team and himself did not perform well enough to make a difference. While Korea and Australia relied on their fast paced game and spontaneous counter attacks, teams like England have set up their goals beautifully.
The venue has lived up to its hype and the game's demands. It also seems like the tourney is a hit among the locals, which is a good sign for the game in a country forever crazy about the other gentleman's game.
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