'Are we capable of beating Australia? 100% we are, but it's going to be super tough': Viren Rasquinha looks ahead to India's hockey medal chances at CWG 2022

The next assignment for both teams are the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and both units will have a point or two to prove. In the last edition in 2018 India didn't win a medal in hockey. Neither team could make the gold medal match and then both lost the bronze medal match to English teams (the men lost to England 2-1, the women lost to England 6-0). Ahead of CWG 2022, former India hockey captain Viren Rasquinha was a guest on Times of India's sports podcast Sportscast and talked about various things, including medal chances of both the men's and women's teams this time.

The following are excerpts from the Sportscast episode with Viren Rasquinha:On the goal-post shifting after the postponement of the Asian Games...'I think we are living in a world and at a time where uncertainty is something that we all have to live with and one of the job descriptions of being an international sports person is to be able to adapt. When you are representing the country you have to be ready at all times and for me there are never any excuses that we are not ready. Every player playing at this level has to be able to adapt quickly and be ready to represent the country - it's the biggest honour, it's what we live for and train so hard for. I don't think it's going to be a big adjustment. Obviously we were supposed to go with the second team for the CWG and the main team for the Asian Games, which is an Olympic qualifier, but now that things have changed we will be sending a full team to the CWG and I think both the boys and the ladies team will be extremely ready and raring to go,' Viren said on TOI Sportscast. On how big a preparatory campaign CWG 2022 will be for the men's team looking ahead to the World Cup in 2023 in India...'I