Belgium coach Jeroen Baart finds the quarterfinal with defending champions India intriguing for a lot of reasons. For one thing, he expects a more open match than his team’s shock 1-1 draw with Malaysia, a team they were expected to beat in Pool B.

“India’s style and ours complement each other,” said Baart who was also Belgium head coach at Lucknow 2016 where his team lost the final 1-2 to the hosts who won their second FIH Junior World Cup title.

“We were not complacent against Malaysia,” Baart said responding to a question in a virtual media conference on Tuesday, November 30, the eve of the contest at the Kalinga stadium.

“Malaysia did a fantastic job but they played a style which we in Europe or Belgium are not used to. They built up a wall of defence and we know it will be different against India who will show speed, counter-attacking ability and vertical play. As for us, we control the ball to create opportunities and the best for us to do is maintain our structure to survive India’s waves of attack.”

About the absence of the thousands of spectators who could have lifted the Indian team, Baart said, “Yes, we had that challenge in the first half of the Lucknow final but fared better in the second. “But there’ll be around 1,000 in the stadium tomorrow and there’ll be a lot of noise. “You could ask me the same question after the match,” Baart said in lighter vein.

The coach’s intrigue over the quarterfinal also concerns a rivalry of sorts that has built up during the last 6-7 years at both senior and junior level.

“Both India and Belgium has invested a lot to bring the best players in and are looking for returns.

“For Belgium, it has resulted in making the Red Lions a force to reckon with.

“India gained a lot from the HIL. which sadly hasn’t been held for the last few years but I hope it returns for the good of Indian players as well as the world’s,” Baart said.

The coach was discreet on details of the tactics he would rely on against India.

“We have plans when it comes to withdrawing our goalkeeper while chasing a match as also in the shootouts. “We have a structured plan for both which I can’t share with you,” he said.

“And we also will be using the aerial ball when needed to put pressure on the opponents. We have used this weapon that we possess before and will do so again but we will use it without making it predictable.”

Baart is mindful of India’s prowess at penalty corners where they have options aplenty, starting with Sanjay who has scored eight goals.

“Their drag flicks are good and if they can’t score from open play, they look at penalty corners opportunities to do so. For us it starts with defending outside the striking circle and not falling into the trap of conceding penalty corners within it.

“We also will rely on our first runners at the penalty corners and both goalkeepers which are very good.

“We will also count on our defensive structure to not concede penalty corners.”

It’s a pity that the two nations meet each other in the quarterfinals rather than the final. It accrued from India’s shock loss to France in their Pool B opener which pitted them against Pool A winners Belgium.

“It’s a dream job for me to be in charge of this team who are really investing in themselves and pushing themselves.

“It was amazing to play in the final at Lucknow and we are looking forward to the process of making the final again although we are facing India earlier than last time. “We are looking at this game as a final and hope to continue the dream.

“I am proud of my players, they’ve played very well and are very confident of facing a strong Indian team,” he said.

The seniors have show the young Belgians the way, explained Baart. India, however, are a hurdle this time around as well. But the soft-spoken Baart’s matter-of-fact portrayal of confidence in his team suggests that Vivek Sagar Prasad’s boys will need to dig deep into their impressive resources to book a semi-final spot.