By Diptayan Hazra
New Delhi [India], December 29 : Lars Balk, the Dutch professional field hockey player who has joined the UP Rudras for the Hockey India League (HIL), is looking forward to the challenges and opportunities the league presents. With an emphasis on defence, Balk is particularly eager to contribute to his team by stopping penalty corners from the likes of Indian captain Harmanpreet Singh and his former Dutch teammate, Jip Janssen.
"I hope to bring to the team my defence skills and to make my coaching on the pitch. That's, I think, important for me, especially to stop some penalty corners of Harman [Harmanpreet Singh] and Jip Janssen, my former teammate in the Netherlands. So, I think that I will bring to the team," Balk told ANI.
Discussing Indian hockey's current state, Balk expressed admiration for India's recent achievements, as they won back-to-back Olympic bronze.
"Yeah, I think the nice thing about Indian hockey is now they have back-to-back bronze medals," he said.
"So, they make steps I think they didn't before in my time. That is special, and I think the Indian Hockey League will help them to maybe make the next step to win a gold medal in Los Angeles. I think they can learn from top players in other countries, to maybe make the last step to the gold medal for the World Cup or the Olympics," he said.
"The players they have right now are world-class but I don't know if there are coming younger players. So, that I don't know," he said about the future Hockey players of India.
Balk also shared his excitement about joining UP Rudras and the challenges of building a cohesive team.
"I think the biggest challenge is to make 24 players who don't know each other into a team but I think that is a big challenge for our head coach, Paul van Ass, but I think he is the right man for the job. It is interesting to play with world-class Indian players like Hardik [Singh] and Lalit [Kumar Upadhyay], as well as the English top players. I'm really looking forward to that, and also the young players of India," he said.
Adjusting to different playing styles and conditions in India is another aspect Balk is preparing for. "I don't know yet," he admitted.
"I hope I can bring some structure with my coaching on the field to make clear who can pick up which players. I don't know where I will play, but I think one of my strengths is to coach and defend well, so we will see," he added.
As for adapting to the weather, Balk remains unfazed.
"Every winter we go to countries like India, Australia, or Argentina, so that's okay. I like the weather. I hope the sun is shining. So, no, I'm looking forward to it," he said.
Reflecting on his journey and the Netherlands' gold medal win at the Olympics, Balk described the experience as unbelievable.
"Three years ago, we started with Jeroen [Delmee], and he made the team. He leads by example, both on and off the pitch. We won bronze in the World Cup 2023, then the Pro League, and the European Championship. We made it step by step with our team. Jeroen created the right mindset in our team," he said.
Maintaining focus and energy during high-pressure tournaments like the Olympics is crucial.
"Yeah, the mental aspect was okay. We know what to do. The training before the Olympics was great. We prepared ourselves top-notch with our coach, physical strength and conditioning coach, and our video analyst. All the people involved helped us focus on hockey," he noted.
Looking ahead, Balk's immediate goals are centred on the HIL.
"Not yet," he responded when asked about future Olympic goals.
"First, I'm looking forward to the Hockey India League. After that, we have the European Championship and World Cup. And after that, we will see," Lars added.
For aspiring hockey players, Balk's advice is simple yet profound.
"The most important thing is to enjoy. Enjoy what you do. Love the game and then, it will come, step by step but don't forget to enjoy the game and have fun with your teammates. I think that's the most important," he concluded.