India will look to continue their good run under newly elected coach Sjoerd Marjine. They take on defending champions Australia in their opening match in the Hockey World League (HWL) Final at the Kalinga Stadium,Bhubaneswar. India finished 3rd in the 2015 Hockey World League final. They defeated Netherlands in the shootout to attain the honors.
Manpreet Singh’s led Indian team will look to make a mark in the tournament after a successful Asia Cup in Dhaka, where they won gold medal.
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“No pressure, nothing at all. Before the match I will prepare them to the best of my ability but I cannot control the outcome of the game. So when I walk out onto the field on Friday, I will just enjoy the crowd,” Marjine said.
“All the young players have potential and that’s why they are with the team. Now it’s normal for most of the youngsters to reach a high level and then fall. But what’s important is how they cope with the fall and learn from it because with all the expectations, it’s normal for them to fall at times,” Marijne added.
India team is packed with young talents including eight players from Junior mens team that won Junior World cup last year in Lucknow. The pressure may mount on them respective of the big crowd expectation at the Kalinga stadium. Also the point that they are been more emphasized than the senior players like Sardar and Ramandeep Singh who are dropped from the team.
The return of Rupinder Pal Singh after 5 months can be a crucial factor for the team alongside penalty corners. He will lead the defense alongside Birendra Lakra and Kothajit Singh. In the midfield Manpreet alongside Chinglensana will play a crucial role for linking the defense with the forwards.. SV Sunil the most experienced player in the team will monitor India’s forward line.
India struggled to convert the PC’s into goals in the recent times. In a crunch tournament like these, top drag flicking specialist are needed who can almost score at a 100% efficiency. The returning Rupinder post an injury will hugely boost team’s performance in penalty corners.
India face Australia on 1st December who they are yet to beat in Hockey World League. They have lost thrice to the world’s no 2 team and will be eager to improve on the record. Australia who are the current holders of the world title, Champions Trophy, Oceania Cup, Hockey World League and Commonwealth Games. And they will aim to extend their domination from December 1. Austalia will be top contender to top the pool. However round-robin clashes would matter as all eight teams from their respective pools will progress to the next stages even if after losing all their three matches.
Hockey World League Final