Hockey | Coach Craig Fulton aims for Asian Games gold and LA 2028 spot

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Following a disappointing eighth-place World Cup finish in the Netherlands and Belgium, the Indian men’s hockey team aims to turn around their fortunes as they prepare to defend their Asian Games title and secure direct qualification for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

Led by Harmanpreet Singh, India will begin their Pool A campaign against Indonesia on Sunday. Despite being the highest-ranked team in a group featuring Japan, South Korea, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka, chief coach Craig Fulton remains focused on topping the group.

“(Regarding) what happened during the World Cup, we have identified what we need to focus on more coming into this tournament (Asian Games). We’re able to go straight into it and focus on those improvements and then do it as a team,” Fulton said.

“These are lessons, and the only way to treat them as lessons learned is to turn that learning into action. That’s what we’ve got to do now,” he added.

“We’ve discussed everything, gone through everything and highlighted areas needing improvement. At the same time, it’s now about action after all the training we’re doing as we line up for our first game on Sunday,” he said.

The 51-year-old South African insisted that India will not take any opponent lightly across Pool A or Pool B, which includes Pakistan and Malaysia.

“All respect to whoever we play. The only way to truly respect the opposition is by giving 100 per cent. That’s what we’ve done, and that’s what we’ll continue to do in all the tournaments. So, you can expect the same, for sure,” Fulton stated.

No place for complacency, says Fulton

Although India has a chance to win back-to-back gold medals for the first time since 1958, Fulton is prioritising a game-by-game strategy.

“Now we’ve played the World Cup before the Asian Games. But it doesn’t really change anything. We take it one game at a time, and we’ve got all our focus on ourselves, not really worrying about anyone else. We want to try and top our pool, and that is our first goal,” he said before the Asian Games opener.

(With inputs from PTI)

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