India and Pakistan will face off at the Hockey World League semifinals in what promises to be an electric encounter. Even the though the rivalry between the two nations on the hockey field has died down over the years, there is still great anticipation and tension as these two teams clash.
The Indians have had a fantastic start to the tournament, with two wins out of two. The first came against Scotland, who were defeated 4-1 by virtue of a four-goal blitz in the third quarter that saw Ramandeep Singh score twice, with both Akashdeep Singh and Harmanpreet Singh hitting the back of the net.
In their second encounter, they produced a clinical performance against Canada. A clean sheet and first-half goals from SV Sunil, Akashdeep and Sardar Singh ensured all three points for the Men in Blue.
On the other hand, Pakistan have endured a horrible start to their campaign, failing to register even a single goal in their two matches and conceding a total of 10. Their first game against Netherlands saw them lose 4-0 and in their second, they lost by an astonishing 6-0 margin against Canada, the same team that lost to India 3-0.
Speaking ahead of the game, captain Manpreet Singh said, “We always look at Pakistan as just another team and we always look at earning those three points from the match to advance in the league stage. They are a good side, but we have had a good start to the tournament.”
He added, “The idea will be to stick to the plans coach draws up before the match, bring in more aggression into our game and aim at finishing on top of the table in the league stage.”
Squads:
India – Akash Chikte, Vikas Dahiya, Pradeep Mor, Kothajit Singh, Surender Kumar, Jasjit Singh Kular, Harmanpreet Singh, Chinglensana Singh, Sumit, Satbir Singh, Sardar Singh, Manpreet Singh, Harjeet Singh, Ramandeep Singh, SV Sunil, Talwinder Singh, Mandeep Singh, Akashdeep Singh
Pakistan – Amjad Ali, Mazhar Abbas, Nawaz Ashfaq, Aleem Bilal, Abubakr Mahmood, Mohammad Rizwan Jr, Atif Mushtaq, Tasawwar Abbas, Ammad Shakeel Butt, Umar Bhutta, M.Irfan Jr, Arslan Qadir, Ali Shan, Mohammad Dilber, Ejaz Ahmed, Abdul Haseem Khan, Azfar Yaqoob, Umair Sarfraz.
Match prediction
Both sides have had contrasting starts to the tournament and it is India, who should take home the win. Both sides, with all the pressure that comes with an India-Pakistan clash, will look to put their best foot forward on the pitch and looking at the quality of the two teams, it should be India who should win comfortably.
Verdict – India 3-0 Pakistan
Live match information
Time – 6.30 PM IST
Venue – Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre, London
Broadcasting – Star Sports 2 HD/SD
Live Streaming – Hotstar
Source:SportsKeeda
loading...
0 Comments
We Will Love to Hear From You! Pls Comment Your Views...........