The Fear of Failure

AS THE DUST settles on the Indian defeat and we come to terms with an untimely exit, it is important to keep calm and exercise restraint. No one is hurting more than the players themselves and we must empathise and back the team. While no over-the-top reaction is required, it is important to also take stock and introspect. What went wrong and why? What has happened since Tokyo that the sport has been backsliding in India? Why did the team not do justice to its potential?

The one difference between the New Zealand and the Indian approaches was the fear of failure. New Zealand played without fear while the Indians were scared of losing. Leading 3:1, India looked insecure and under pressure to deliver. They seemed overawed by the crowd’s presence and just did not want to lose. As a result, they lost shape and composure. India’s insecurity made New Zealand aggressive and the former defensive. Does Harmanpreet Singh not have the ability? He absolutely does and we have seen that many times in the past. However, his urge to prove himself as captain and leader because he just did not want to fail put undue pressure on him. He was scared of failing and was trying too hard. Unlike in the bronze medal match against Germany in Tokyo where the Indians played with a lot of positive energy, against New Zealand, the players were desperate not to fail. As a result, they turned defensive. It was a safety-first approach and it backfired. This is where one has to question Graham Reid. What exactly was the plan in the last quarter? Why was the shape lost? Why is it that the team looked mentally scared going into the last few minutes and lost a two-goal advantage?

Except for Hardik Singh, who was badly missed, every other player looked under par at the World Cup. Whether it was the pressure of expectations weighing the team down or the presence of a large crowd, we will never know. Whatever the case, it is now time to rethink and rebuild. The Olympics is just 18 months away and the Asian Games are in September this year. A gold medal at the Asian Games will ensure direct Olympic qualification and India will certainly not want to play in the qualifiers and make things difficult for themselves. Do we need a mental conditioning coach as Reid mentioned at the press conference? If yes, why was it not done before the World Cup? Can Harmanpreet and Manpreet Singh not lead by example? Of course, they can. They are the best in the world and have played many memorable games. But here, they seemed desperate not to make mistakes. As a result, they ended up looking apprehensive and unsure.

Is this approach a result of the pressure that the Indian team is always under? Was it the result of pre-World Cup hype? And the fact that it was being played at home, and the Indians were coming off a decent run in the last two years?

Where we go wrong is when constructive criticism turns to abuse. Take the case of Harmanpreet. He rose to the position of captain by sheer hard work and excellent results. He scored 18 penalty corner goals in the Pro League just a year ago. Yes, the World Cup was poor for the captain. And he will be the first person to accept that. But who is to say he should give up? Or abuse him? Will someone tell a journalist to stop writing if he writes a bad story or misses one? Does a politician give up after one defeat? Does a medical professional stop practising if he isn’t able to save a patient? To do what he wants to do is Harmanpreet’s decision. Entirely his own. No one can tell him what to do about his career. Yes, the selectors can decide not to retain him as skipper and that’s why they are there. They need to take the hard calls if they think such calls are the need of the hour. But to abuse Harmanpreet who was the hero after Tokyo is just unacceptable.

It is time to take a step back and think about what went wrong and how we can improve. Odisha 2023 is history. No amount of abuse will get India to the final. Instead, we need a new vision for the sport. A roadmap of sorts that will define our approach to the game. That India has the money is known. That we have the world’s best infrastructure is now a given. There is no reason why we will not win a world event. And yet, we haven’t for years. So, let’s hit the nail on the head. Let’s address the core issue—the fear of failure.

If our players are able to overcome the inner fear, there is no reason why we cannot win. New Zealand played freely and this was because they had nothing to lose. They were enjoying themselves and egging each other on in the last quarter knowing India were on the mat. The advantage had been lost and it was New Zealand in the ascendant. New Zealand went all in. We did not. In a game as intense as this, a safety-first won’t have worked and the faster we come to terms with it, the better it is for us. With the Asian Games round the corner, it is just a matter of time before the players face the media glare again. This is where we can start afresh—experiment with a new approach and make a new beginning. The defeat is history. The future is in our hands.

Dilip Tirkey, the president of Hockey India, posted a vid­eo on social media soon after the match ended. In it, he talk­ed about missing penalty corners and penalty strokes. He said we can’t win if we miss so many penalty corners. Now, that’s known to us all. The question is: Why was it that Harmanpreet was able to convert many of those in the Pro League but failed to do so in the World Cup? What changed? Was it that millions were watching him and he felt the bur­den of expectations? If that’s the case, it is entirely men­tal rather than anything else, and has to be addressed soon. The momentum built in Tokyo has been somewhat dent­ed by the World Cup loss. We can’t afford a second failure at the Asian Games and need to be careful. Sport always gives a second chance. It allows you to fail in public and, thereafter, come back and win in public. Time for the Indian team to do that—and redeem themselves. Until then, the fans need to be with them. And not against them.

BhubaneswarDilip TirkeyHarmanpreethockeyIndian sports