Hockey World Cup 2023: India seeks better attacking display against New Zealand in Hardik Singh's absence
Hockey World Cup 2023 will be conducting its cross-over matches, where India will be taking on New Zealand for a shot at the quarterfinal. Meanwhile, the Indians would be eager to present a better attacking display without Hardik Singh.
FollowA below-par show against debutants Wales denying them a direct quarterfinal berth, hosts India would look to address its attacking woes against a plucky New Zealand for a place in the last-eight stage of the 2023 FIH Men's Hockey World Cup at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneshwar on Sunday. India needed to beat Wales -- eight places below them in world rankings -- by a margin of eight goals to top Pool D and qualify directly for the quarterfinals, but the home side could only notch up a 4-2 win on Thursday, as the forwards lacked in finishing. India is now up against New Zealand in the must-win cross-over match. The Black Sticks finished third in Pool C with a win and two losses.
Currently ranked 12th in the world as against India's sixth position, New Zealand -- who have never reached the semifinals -- have also not done anything extraordinary in the tournament, and the home side definitely would start as favourites in front of an expected jampacked Kalinga Stadium. India's key midfielder Hardik Singh has been ruled out of the tournament after failing to recover from his hamstring injury sustained in the match against England on January 15.
Hardik's absence will be a significant setback for India as it has struggled in the attacking department. It is expected to run into defending champions Belgium in the quarterfinals if they beat New Zealand. Hardik, who scored a brilliant solo goal in India's 2-0 win over Spain in the opening match, will be replaced by alternate player Raj Kumar Pal. He did not play against Wales.
Against a Wales team, whom England and Spain had beaten 5-0 and 5-1, the Indians struggled to find goals as the forwards put up a poor show. The Indians failed to get their strategy right against Wales, who defended in numbers inside their circle. The Indian defence, which had a clean sheet till then, conceded two goals against Wales, ranked 14th in the world.
Captain Harmanpreet Singh scored his and the team's first goal from penalty corners, while the experienced Akashdeep Singh saved India by scoring twice after Wales made it 2-2 at the end of the third quarter. In the absence of Hardik, the performance of senior players like Mandeep Singh and Akashdeep will be essential for the hosts.
Undoubtedly, India would start as favourites against New Zealand, but the Black Sticks will not be easy to beat. India had won against it twice (4-3 and 7-4) in October-November last year during the FIH Pro League at the same stadium, but New Zealand is no pushover in world hockey.
"It will not be an easy match against New Zealand. It was a tough match in the first game [in FIH Pro League] though the second one was a bit easier. We have to play our best," Reid had said. Historically, the two sides had played 44 matches against each other, and India had won 24 while losing 15. Five games were drawn. The last time New Zealand beat India was a 2-1 win in 2019.
New Zealand would be smarting after its 2-3 loss to Malaysia in their final Pool C match on Thursday. It had beaten tournament debutants Chile 3-1 in its opening game before expectedly losing to Netherlands 0-4. New Zealand has some genuine world-class players, and the Indians must play their best.
Defender Blair Tarrant, defensive midfielder Nick Ross and veteran striker Simon Child are New Zealand's key players. Penalty corner expert Kane Russell is yet to sound the board and would be gunning for goals. Sam Lana and Sam Hiha scored two goals each in the tournament and would look to add more.
Squads
India: Harmanpreet Singh (c), Abhishek, Surender Kumar, Manpreet Singh, Jarmanpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Lalit Upadhyay, Krishan Pathak, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, PR Sreejesh, Nilakanta Sharma, Shamsher Singh, Varun Kumar, Akashdeep Singh, Amit Rohidas, Vivek Sagar Prasad and Sukhjeet Singh.
New Zealand: Nic Woods (c), Dom Dixon, Dane Lett, Simon Child, Nick Ross, Sam Hiha, Kim Kingston, Jake Smith, Sam Lane, Simon Yorston, Aidan Sarikaya, Joe Morrison, Leon Hayward, Kane Russell, Blair Tarrant, Sean Findlay, Hayden Phillips and Charlie Morrison.
Match details
Date and day: January 22, 2023 (Sunday)
Venue: Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar
Time: 7 PM (IST)
Where to watch (TV): Star Sports Select 2 and other Star Sports regional language channels - Also available in HD
Where to watch (Online): Hotstar
(With inputs from PTI)
