‘Maybe pressure was bit too much’

Bhubaneswar: Former India coach Roelant Oltmans believes pressure got the better of the Indian team as they went down to New Zealand in the crossover tie here on Sunday. Speaking to TOI on Monday, Oltmans, who has come down here for Hockey World Cup, said, “It’s very disappointing for the players and the staff who worked hard to make the World Cup very successful but maybe the pressure was a bit too much in the end.”
“Not winning after leading two times with a two-goal difference and even having two chances to win the match during the shootouts, is a sad feeling,” said Oltmans.
“Especially after their performance at the Tokyo Olympics, everybody was expecting them to do well but now they will have to go back to Rourkela and play the classifications. Hopefully, they will be able to mentally recover from this loss and perform well in the two matches.” — Arnab.Seal