There is some optimism among former players that India will break the 47-year wait when the men’s hockey world cup begins on January 13 in Bhuvneshwar and Orissa. India last competed in a hockey World Cup final in 1975, the same year they defeated Pakistan 2-1 to win the tournament for the first and only time.
The majority of Indians have taken up hockey since winning bronze at the 2021 Olympics, and there is a huge expectation that India will place third in the upcoming event.
With Wales, Spain, and England, India belongs in group D.
As they won the group, their quarterfinal encounter will be quite simple. In all honesty, group D may be referred to as the group of death since any team could defeat another on any given day. On the thirteenth, India faces up against Spain.
India could have a good chance of winning the tournament since the crowd is the 12th participant. An early victory will give players confidence and momentum going into games against England and Wales on January 15 and 19.
However, as is usually the case, offence wins games and defence wins trophies, thus teams that can expertly fend off any onslaught that enters their defence will go far in the tournament.
Viewing the squad India’s six designated defenders are led by captain Harmanpreet. A penalty corner will be awarded for any errors or referees in the defence line’s interceptions and stick tackles.
Moving on to the attacking aspect, we don’t lack the skill and our attacking style is on par with that of any elite European side. In order for Lalit, Mandeep, and company to pounce like hawks, Manpreet, Hardik, and Akashdeep will be the crucial players moving the ball forward and producing the cutting crosses or defense-splitting passes for the forwards.
Harmanpreet will be our essential player since in addition to managing the defense, he also has to take charge of the PCs’ scoring.
The one obvious issue right now is that we don’t have a second battery that has been proved to work. If Harmanpreet has a terrible day, we won’t have somebody to try a different approach; alternatively, the coaching team thinks Amit Rohidas has what it takes to come in and back Harmanpreet.
For more than 20 years, our defence has been our weakest point. To win a major tournament, we either need our back line to play like a wall or our front line to score exactly one goal more than our opponent does during the match.
Considering how other teams play, it appears like our defence line will face a litmus test, one that they must pass to support the good sentiments and end a 47-year drought.
