Hockey World Cup 2023: In 2021 Tokyo, India won its first Olympic medal in 41 years, reviving expectations that a World Cup gold was not out of the question. Since then, the squad has seen significant changes, both in terms of people and outcomes.
India last won the World Cup 48 years ago
It sounds fantastic to be the runner-up at the Commonwealth Games in 2022, unless you consider how badly Australia beat it in the final. While the bench was sufficiently challenged by third-place finishes at the Asian Champions Trophy and the Asia Cup with primarily youthful and inexperienced lineups, the senior players were forced to make do with the few Pro League matchups for match practise. It doesn’t help that the team’s most recent game ended in a 4-1 series loss to Australia.
The nation took home a bronze medal at the first competition in 1971 and a silver medal at the next competition in 1973. The team won the title under Ajit Pal Singh’s leadership in 1975, but they haven’t advanced past the semifinals since. India was unable to get past the group stage from 1978 to 2014. The strong group under the leadership of Harmanpreet Singh will undoubtedly be one of the medal contenders for the Indian squad. In recent years, the squad has gained the respect of other leading nations.
India, now rated sixth in the world, entered the competition following an outstanding performance against Australia, the current world number one team, in an away five-match series, although they lost the rubber 1-4.
New world-class stadium in Odisha
However, England and neighbouring Wales, who face off against each other in the first match of Pool D, two hours before India vs. Spain, will have the honour of hosting the first international match at the brand-new, 21,000-capacity Birsa Munda Stadium, which the Odisha government has bragged about as being the largest in the world in terms of spectator attendance.
Argentina and South Africa will meet in Pool A’s tournament opener at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, which will host the first World Cups back-to-back.
Squad:
India: Harmanpreet Singh (captain), Abhishek, Surender Kumar, Manpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Jarmanpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Lalit Upadhyay, Krishan Pathak, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, PR Sreejesh, Nilakanta Sharma, Shamsher Singh, Varun Kumar, Akashdeep Singh, Amit Rohidas (vice-captain), Vivek Sagar Prasad and Sukhjeet Singh.
When will the match begin: The match begins at 7:00 IST.
Where to watch: Star Sports and the Hotstar app will both offer live coverage of the 2023 Hockey World Cup.
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