Paris Olympics: Hockey Captain Harmanpreet Singh Emphasises Importance of ‘Starting Well’ Against New Zealand

Paris: Indian men’s hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh exuded confidence ahead of their campaign opener against New Zealand at the Paris 2024 Olympics, scheduled for Saturday. Speaking about New Zealand in particular, they have been a strong opponent for India - and memories of their 3-3 (4-5 SO) result at the World Cup in Bhubaneswar last year are a reminder to not get complacent against this opponent.

“We have always seen New Zealand as a strong opponent and have discussed this team in detail during our team briefs. It is good to be reminded of the World Cup match against them, so we know we can’t drop the momentum at any point in the game. It’s important for us to start well and keep up the pressure through the game,” said Harmanpreet. Having arrived in Europe a little over two weeks ago, the Indian side has gone through a 3-day mental conditioning camp in Switzerland, played high-octane practice matches against Malaysia, the Netherlands, Germany, and Great Britain in the days leading up to their first Pool B match here.

“We had some really good practice matches before we arrived in Paris and the experience as a unit in Switzerland was something unique, nothing like what we have done in the past. We are in a good place mentally and physically to begin our campaign,” expressed the Captain.

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