Hockey World League Final: Which India will turn up against Argentina in semis?
Feroz Khan

BHUBANESWAR: Rejuvenated after a thrilling win, India will be eyeing to enter a maiden final when they face Argentina in the Hockey World League Final at the Kalinga Stadium here on Friday.

It has been a strange tournament for India. They have played four matches and still you cannot figure out whether they are good enough to win the tournament. And this is after a night when they edged ahead of tournament favourites Belgium in a thrilling shootout. Three matches after the league stage, they would’ve been the last team one would pick to make the semis based on current form. Yet they have managed to put themselves in medal contention. In the previous edition of the tournament, they entered the semi-final after an identical result in the pool stage – a draw and two defeats. They then ended up beating Netherlands in a shootout to claim bronze. However, when they play Argentina, the aim will be to go one better this time around. More so, as this happens to be the third and final edition of the tournament before it will be replaced by a Pro League.

The have dazzled and disappointed in a week’s time. Against Australia and Belgium, they played their best hockey – passes finding the intended targets, forwards making darting runs inside the D, defenders showing extra commitment, successful penalty corners (PC) conversions. Against England and Germany, they progressed from bad to poor. They missed their chances to score, failed at penalty corners, defenders made silly errors and even captain Manpreet Singh was off colour.

Sjoerd Marijne has been just three months in charge of the men’s hockey team and must have already experienced a gamut of emotions. His job from Day 1 has been to make this team consistent. It’s a word that the Dutch often uses.