Men's Hockey World Cup 2018: 5 goalkeepers to watch out for

#1 PR Sreejesh (India)

Neither age nor injury has deterred India's champion goalkeeper

The Great Wall of India is certainly not infallible -- in the big final of the Champions Trophy against the Aussies at Breda, the celebrated goalkeeper seemed a trifle confused as he failed to stop a drag flick from Blake Govers which, on television replays, seemed stoppable by a man of Sreejesh's calibre.

While analysing the tournament for Sportskeeda, India's champion goalkeeper who singlehandedly resisted a fierce onslaught of attacks from the Belgians and the Dutch to power India to the final, explained that Govers' flick came on a lot slower than he had expected and may have been deliberate.

Sreejesh won the Best Goalkeeper of the Tournament award at Breda. Even for a man who has won many such accolades for a decade now, the award was significant, coming as it did just a year after a right knee injury which forced him out of action for the better part of last year.

Yet, like a true champion, the veteran not only made his way back to the national team but regained his stellar form in the prestigious event.

While most teams now prefer to employ the services of two goalkeepers for varying durations in a match, the Indian camp decided against exerting early big-match pressure on Suraj Karkera and Krishan Pathak during the Commonwealth Games and Champions Trophy, as a result of which Sreejesh stood guarding the Indian citadel for the entire sixty minutes.

Sreejesh's ability to shout out instructions to his defenders and inspire the team was aptly summed by Indian striker Mandeep Singh.

"Sreejesh, for us, is like a precious diamond and he has saved the day for us many a time. I often tell Sreejesh that he is the best goalkeeper in the world. He not only saves goals but uses his booming voice to good effect."

"I do not know of any other goalkeeper who screams out instructions as much, and as loudly as Sreejesh does to tell us how to position ourselves to engage in man-to-man tackles. He has an energy that is infectious and even though he does not run as much as we do, he makes up for it with his vociferous encouragement and instructions."

Can Sreejesh inspire the Indians to conquer the hockey world at Bhubaneswar? As the seniormost member of the team, the Indian goalkeeper will have to play the role of guide and mentor as the hosts look to register their best-ever finish in four decades.