With a relatively young and inexperienced side at his disposal, High Performance Director Roelant Oltmans is doing his bid to take the pressure off his wards and said being the interim coach he would be solely responsible for India's performance in the Asia Cup hockey tournament to be held in Ipoh, Malaysia.
India face a must-win situation in the Asia Cup, to be held from August 24 to September 1, as they need to win the tournament to qualify for next year's World Cup in Hague, The Netherlands.
"I'll be responsible for the team's performance but at the
same time I'm confident also," Oltmans told the media persons on the sidelines of the national camp at the National Stadium here today.
"We have prepared ourselves in the best possible manner in the short period of time we had. We can assure all that we will give our 100 per cent every single minute and in every single game we play," the Dutchman added.
Injuries to four key players -- Askashdeep Singh, S V Sunil, Gurwinder Singh Chandi and Danish Mujatab -- had forced India to field a young and inexperienced forwardline, but Oltmans reposed faith in his young crop of strikers to deliver in the Asia Cup.
"Of course we will deliver, there is no doubt about it. The boys are working very hard and I am confident that it is the right team to be there," he said.
