Read the passage and answer the questions given below it.
Linthoi had never played on a ground so flat. At home in Imphal the college field was all tufts and bare patches, and a ball could hop sideways off a stone. Here in Kolhapur the grass was cut short and even, the lines were newly painted, and a raw wind blew across it from the hills.
In the hostel the night before, Sanatombi had talked until the warden switched off the light, about the dal, about the Kerala girls in the next room who laughed at everything. Linthoi had lain awake listening to the ceiling fan tick on each turn. At breakfast the rice was the wrong kind, dry and loose. She finished every grain, because Coach Tomba was noting who left food on their plates.
Behind the stand she retied her left boot twice.
The first time the ball came to her, she hit it far too hard and it rolled out for a goal kick. Someone in the crowd shouted something in Marathi. She did not know what it meant and decided it was not about her.
Coach Tomba did not shout from the line. He held out his palm and pressed it down through the air, twice, slowly.
Ten minutes later she took a high ball on her chest, let it drop, and slid it out to Roja on the wing without looking up. It left her foot the way it did at home. Roja’s cross was cleared, but Linthoi noticed she was breathing properly again. By the second half she had stopped hearing the crowd.
What is Coach Tomba most likely telling Linthoi when he presses his palm down through the air?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → That she should calm down and not try so hard
The coach’s signal comes right after Linthoi hits the ball too hard, and it asks her to slow down.
- Her first touch is “far too hard”, and the ball rolls out. This is a sign of nerves.
- The coach “did not shout”. He pressed his palm down “twice, slowly”. A hand pushed gently downward is a common sign for “settle down, take it easy”.
Why the Other Options are Incorrect?
Option 2: That she should pass the ball out to the wing more often — Incorrect. Wrong link: She does pass to Roja on the wing later, but the signal answers her over-hit ball, not where she passes.
Option 3: That she will be taken off if she makes another mistake — Incorrect. Not mentioned: The quiet, slow gesture carries no threat, and nothing is said about taking her off.
Option 4: That she should push forward and shoot at every chance — Incorrect. Contradicted: A palm pressed downward asks for less force. Pushing forward to shoot would mean more.