With two extra matches remaining, the Indian males’s hockey staff will purpose to finish their FIH Pro League dwelling leg marketing campaign on a optimistic notice. Out of the six matches they’ve performed up to now, India received two, drew thrice, grabbed the bonus level in shootouts twice and misplaced one.

That solitary loss got here in opposition to the mighty Australians, who they face once more on Saturday adopted by a match in opposition to Ireland on Sunday at Rourkela’s Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium.

The massive match

India’s match in opposition to Australia final week, a wild 6-4 win for the latter, had its penalties. It was a match the place Australia began shortly, scoring twice within the opening two minutes earlier than India answered with 4 targets. In the second half, the match turned once more with the Aussies scoring 4 extra targets. After the match, Fulton mentioned that India have been going for extra targets, which resulted in areas opening up for the Aussies to assault on the turnovers. He mentioned that it was necessary for India to attain the fifth purpose, however they need to’ve picked the precise moments to assault.

In the matches that adopted, India didn’t begin that nicely, when it comes to taking the assault to their opponents. They have sometimes began sluggish, specializing in the defence after which upping the depth publish the break. Both Spain and the Netherlands dominated the primary halves in opposition to India however Fulton’s staff took each matches to shootouts thanks to higher performances within the third and fourth quarters. While it was irritating to observe India sit again and permit their opponents to dominate the ball, the comebacks within the final two quarters show that they’re choosing the right moments to push up the depth and are succeeding of their recreation plan.

India’s defence, particularly after the Australia loss, has been strong though each Spain and the Netherlands scored in opposition to them. Against each groups, India got here underneath intense stress however didn’t enable their opponents to run away with the sport.

Australia are in very good kind on this leg, successful all six matches whereas scoring 28 targets. They’ve conceded targets, however their ultra-aggressive model of hockey usually delivers optimistic outcomes for them. They won’t change their strategy on Saturday, so India know that their defence must endure waves of assault. The foremost precedence for India is to restrict the variety of penalty nook possibilities for Australia. Blake Govers (5 penalty nook targets) and Jeremy Hayward (4 penalty nook targets) are the perfect within the enterprise and so they do not normally miss their dragflicks. India’s defence contained in the circle must be spot-on.

Another necessary issue is captain Harmanpreet Singh. He has not scored in India’s final three matches. It was Harmanpreet who struck the targets to show the match round in opposition to the Aussies final time and he had additionally scored to assist his males beat Spain of their opening match. While it is too quickly to speak about his kind — he has scored 4 targets up to now — India can’t afford their largest purpose risk to have a four-game goal-less run.

What they mentioned:

Krishan Pathak: “Our last encounter with Australia was a tightly contested game, and unfortunately, we ended up on the wrong side. We’ve identified the areas that require improvement and are aware of what we need to do to turn the result in our favour this time. It’s a matter of taking control of those important moments.”

Eddie Ockenden: “We have another great opportunity with two huge games coming up this weekend and two quality opposition, India with a massive crowd and the Netherlands again, it’s great practice for us and it’s a great challenge for us moving forward so we’re looking forward to it.” (Via Hockey Australia).

Pro League Schedule:

February 24: Spain vs Ireland at 5.30 pm, India vs Australia at 7.30 pm.
February 25: Australia vs Netherlands at 5.30 pm, India vs Ireland at 7.30 pm.