Rupinderpal wants to make most of Netherlands tour

Wih half a dozen goals in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup last month,Chandigarh player Rupinderpal Singh not only emerged as the top scorer but in doing so,he also improved his record of scoring the most goals in his career as a penalty corner expert.

Wih half a dozen goals in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup last month,Chandigarh player Rupinderpal Singh not only emerged as the top scorer but in doing so,he also improved his record of scoring the most goals in his career as a penalty corner expert. It was his coming-of-age display. On Friday,Singh was rewarded for his wonderful showing and was named in the Indian hockey squad for the Netherlands tour,starting from Sunday. On hearing the news,Rupinderpal made the first call to penalty corner expert Sandeep Singh,who was also recalled to the Indian side after a long absence,as the two will take the responsibility of giving vital breakthroughs to the team.

Also,the experience of playing with Sandeep will benefit Rupinderpal. “Scoring those six goals and emerging as the top scorer in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup last month did boost my confidence. Though V Raghunath and Gurjinder Singh were the other penalty corner experts in the team,we all had a healthy competition in the team. This time,Sandeep paaji has made a comeback to the team and he is one of the best penalty corner experts in the world. Playing along with him in Netherlands will help improve my game and we will discuss some strategies before the games,” shared Rupinder while talking with Sportline from Bengaluru before boarding the flight to Netherlands.

Rupinderpal was part of the Indian team that toured Netherlands in 2010 and had featured in the two Test matches. This time,the Indian team will play two Test matches against the Dutch national team and five matches against the Dutch domestic clubs. Having already played along with the likes of Teun De Noojer and Floris Evers in the Hockey India League in January earlier this year,Rupinder believes that playing in Europe will benefit his game ahead of a hectic season.

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“We will play two Test matches against the Dutch national team and it will test our stamina. As a penalty corner expert,playing against the Dutch team poses a tough challenge as their goal-keepers are considered the best in the international arena. But I played against some of them in the Hockey India League and I am sure that experience will come handy for me. The Dutch clubs are also highly rated and some of the best European players play for them,” informed Singh.

The Netherlands tour will be followed by FIH men’s Hockey World League Round 3 (Semi-finals) to be played at Rotterdam,Netherlands,from June 13 to 23 later this year. The event is the qualifier for the 2014 World Cup to be played in Netherlands next year. “Coach Michael Nobbs is very particular about us getting exposure in European conditions. That’s why he wanted us to play in Europe before the FIH World league. There are a lot of important tournaments next year that include the World Cup,Asian Games and Commonwealth Games. Last time,I missed the Commonwealth Games but this time I am eager to play in the event to be held in Glasgow next year,” signed off Singh.

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