6 days ago
India Face Belgium in World Cup Seventh-Place Test
India’s hockey team did not reach the World Cup semi-finals.
They will now play Belgium for seventh or eighth place.
Belgium is a very strong team and will play at home.
India struggled to defend against pressure in earlier matches.
Their coach said they must defend better and keep control of the ball.
Belgium has dangerous players who score many goals, especially from penalty corners.
India has beaten Pakistan and Wales but lost to England and Argentina.
The game could help India regain confidence before the Asian Games.
India will play Belgium in the World Cup seventh/eighth-place classification match in Wavre on Friday.
India finished fourth in Pool E and missed the semi-finals after losing 3-5 to Argentina.
India have scored 14 goals and conceded 16 during the tournament.
Belgium will have home-crowd support and recently defeated India twice in Pro League matches.
The match is viewed as a chance for India to rebuild confidence before the Asian Games.
- Who
- India and Belgium’s men’s hockey teams, led by Harmanpreet Singh and coached by Craig Fulton for India.
- What
- They will contest the seventh/eighth-place classification match at the FIH World Cup.
- Where
- Wavre, Belgium; the match will be played on Belgium’s home ground.
- When
- Friday, August 27, at 6:15 p.m. local time, or 9:45 p.m. IST.
- Why
- Both teams missed the semi-finals and want to finish the tournament positively; India also seeks to rebuild confidence before the Asian Games.
Key facts
- Match
- India vs Belgium, seventh/eighth-place classification
- Venue
- Wavre, Belgium
- India’s tournament record
- 14 goals scored and 16 conceded
- India’s decisive result
- Lost 3-5 to Argentina in the final second-round match
- Recent head-to-head
- Belgium beat India 4-2 and 3-1 in the Pro League in Rourkela in February
- Belgium scoring leaders
- Tom Boon scored five World Cup goals; Alexander Hendrickx is a penalty-corner specialist
- Start time
- 6:15 p.m. local time; 9:45 p.m. IST
Quotes
Craig Fulton
India men's hockey team coach
“Playing against the hosts on their home ground is very exciting. It will be like playing against India in Rourkela or Bhubaneswar, and we are eager to play in this wonderful atmosphere.”
theprint.in
“Belgium is a great team and one of the top three in the world. They too will not be happy with their performance in the tournament.”
theprint.in
Sources
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