After the recent run of success at home and Down Under, the Indian hockey team head to Malaysia for the Sultan Azlan Shah Gold Cup tournament hoping to make a mark.

The five-nation event starts in Ipoh on April 5, and chief coach Harendra Singh, however, is wary of raising expectations after their second-place finish in the tournament last time around, and says the team will take it one match at a time.

“I won’t say I am very happy, but yes I’m satisfied with the way the team has performed lately,” Harendra told The Indian Express before leaving for Malaysia with the team.

“They have shown considerable improvement and I am confident of at least making the final. The final, of course, will be a different ball-game altogether, and the result will depend on how a team fare on that particular day,” he said.

The circumspection is understandable. While the team, without doubt, have played well in the last one year, they have faltered at the last hurdle on at least two occasions — against Argentina in the Azlan Shah itself in May 2008 and in the Punjab Gold Cup hockey tournament at home earlier this year.

Realistic targets

“We’ve lost a couple of finals, but it’s not about that. I think we should set ourselves realistic targets and try to achieve them first. I would rather take it on a match-to-match basis, and not look too far ahead,” he said. “Having said that, there is no reason we shouldn’t be able to go out there and better last year’s performance. We are a much better side this time around.”

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