Adrian says he is prepared to take on Sohail

NEW DELHI - India’s hockey goalkeeper Adrian D’Souza says Sohail Abbas may be the game’s best drag flicker, but the Pakistani will be as much under pressure as he would be when they come face to face in their opening World Cup contest Feb 28.

A confident Adrian says he is mentally prepared to take on Sohail, who holds the world record for most international goals and that he know exactly what he should do as he had countered his tricks before and successfully, too.

The Indian goalkeeper says is not trying to psyche himself up with bravado, he knows it is not easy to stand up to Sohail, widely regarded as a clean striker.

Sohail, whose sheer individual brilliance has often changed the fortunes of his team, found Adrian a difficult customer on many occasions, particularly during the 2004-05 season when the two countries clashed quite a few times. Sohail was so impressed with the then 20-year-old Adrian’s daredevilry that he had dubbed him the best goalkeeper he had encountered.

Adrian and Sohail would renew their rivalry at the New Delhi World Cup next week.

“It will surely be a battle of wits between us,” Adrian told IANS.

“But I know that if he is the world’s best drag flicker then I am one of the very few goalkeepers to have tackled him successfully and that will weigh on his mind.”

“I have faced him a lot of times in 2004-05 and I am proud of the fact that I was the only goalkeeper to have kept his scoring rate below two goals per match. That was quite an achievement, considering his enormous reputation,” says Adrian who came into limelight when he received the best goalkeeper award after India’s win in the junior Asia Cup in Karachi in 2004.

Soon after, Sohail quit the game only to stage a comeback last year. Adrian and Sohail were ranged against each other at the Champions Challenge tournament in Argentina in December when Pakistan denied India the Champions Trophy berth by beating them 6-3 in the semifinal. Sohail struck twice.

“Yes, we made some mistakes in the match and hopefully we will not repeat them. We have learnt our lessons,” says Adrian who has 100 internationals under his belt.

The Indian, who played at the Athens Olympics in 2004, displacing Devesh Chauhan, was part of the team that won the Asia Cup in Chennai in 2007.

Talking of the game against Pakistan, Adrian says the first match of any major tournament is crucial as it will have a bearing on the performance in the subsequent matches.

“The first match is very important for any team and you can’t have tougher opponents than Pakistan, more so because of our none-too-happy track record against them in recent times.”

“It is a challenge for our team to settle down quickly as the World Cup is going to be our first major tournament in a couple of years. We have played bilateral series and some tournaments against tough opposition, but it has been a while since we played in a major event since we did not qualify for the Beijing Olympics and the Champions Trophy.”

For him personally, Adrian says, the World Cup will be a huge moment.

“I am happy with my form. I have been pretty consistent in the last one year and hope to continue that. We have trained hard and geared up for the tournament.

“I never thought that I would play in the World Cup at home. It’s exciting and a big moment for me and my family,” says the Mumbaikar.