BHUBANESWAR: All the noise at the Kalinga stadium here on Sunday night came from a small group of players dressed in black. As New Zealand celebrated their victory over India, a deathly silence hung all around.
For a while, Indian players were too stunned to even exchange commiserations. At one end of the ground, Akashdeep Singh and Hardik Singh sat inside a goal, lost in thought. What went wrong? Indian chief coach Graham Reid was just as baffled as the rest of the hockey world. Asked why India struggled to convert circle penetration and what was lacking, the Australian replied straight-faced: “It’s interesting, it is a very good question. I don’t know the answer.”
