CHENNAI
India men’s 4x100m relay coach James Hillier has admitted the national team lacks experience and squad depth after the quartet’s disappointing campaign at the World Athletics Relays 2026 in Botswana earlier this month.
The Indian team was disqualified during the second round after a failed baton exchange between Ragul Kumar and Gurindervir Singh in the third and fourth legs respectively. Ragul stumbled during the exchange and failed to pass the baton, ending India’s hopes despite a promising start on the opening day.
India had clocked a season-best 39.07 seconds in the first qualifying round, but injuries severely disrupted preparations ahead of the crucial race.
Regular members Manikanta Hoblidhar and Amlan Borgohain missed the competition due to injuries. Replacement runner Tamil Arasu also suffered an injury while participating in the mixed relay event, forcing the coaching staff into another last-minute change.
Speaking after the Indian Open Athletics Series in Chennai, Hillier accepted responsibility for the poor performance and acknowledged that the young squad struggled under pressure.
“We have to be realistic with these guys. This was a very high-pressure situation. A lot of them had never even travelled overseas before, let alone competed at a World Championship-level event,” Hillier said.
The coach emphasised that the focus should be on learning from mistakes rather than criticising the athletes.
“What we now have to do is not chastise the people that made the mistakes, but look at what happened and what we can do in future to fix it,” he added.
Hillier revealed that the crucial Ragul-Gurindervir baton exchange had only been practised a handful of times because Tamil Arasu was originally expected to run the leg before his injury setback.
“Losing Tamil through injury was a real problem for us. Harsh Raut had never even run a relay before this event,” Hillier explained.
Despite the setback, Hillier remains optimistic about India’s preparations for the Asian Games and believes a fully fit squad can deliver stronger performances.
The Indian relay team is now scheduled to compete in meets in Saudi Arabia later this month and in Chinese Taipei in June as part of its preparations for upcoming major international competitions.