Host India set to face Argentina in a eyecatching opener of the Hockey World League at the Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel Stadium here in Raipur on Friday. The HWL, which ends on 6 December, will see eight teams battling it out for the illustrious title.
The eight teams who have made it to the final stage are divided into two groups. Group A consists of Australia, Great Britain, Belgium and Canada. India are placed in Pool B alongside world number five Argentina,world number two Holland and world number three Germany .
Under High Performance Director Roelant Oltmans India has shown some significant progress in the recent past.The Sardar Singh led side also showed some Brilliant display in the three test series against world champions Australia.But the HWL Final will be a different ball game.India will have to rub shoulders with the biggest teams.All the teams in the HWL Final have qualified following some commendable performance in the HWL semi finals.
Argentina, better known as a country of football , have been quite consistent in some major competitions, which includes their magnificent third-place finish in the 2014 Hockey World Cup.
This kind of results define Argentina as one of the powerful teams in the competition. India, on the other hand, have also been quite brilliant, having finished third in the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Malaysia and fourth in the HWL semi final in Belgium..
India who finished fourth in the HWL semifinal in Antwerp would be loking to impress infront of their home fans. India have a number of great players in their ranks, including V R Raghunath, S V Sunil, Akashdeep Singh and Sardar Singh, who can play an integral role for the home team.
These players need to be at their best in front of the home fans, who have always supported India to the hilt. However, India’s defence, which has been a bit shaky in their last few tournaments, needs to be solid and not concede silly goals.
With Argentina having players like Manuel Brunet, who can singlehandedly change the face of a match, India cannot afford to give easy chances as he can score with utmost ease. Besides Brunet, Agrentina will also ask their most consistent player Lucas Vila to create some scintillating display with the stick.
The opening ceremony will be presided over by Dr Raman Singh,Chief Minister,Chhattisgarh,and Balramji Dass Tandon,Governor of Chhattisgarh.