India up against Japan in opener

New Delhi: India will eye a winning start against Japan in their opening match of the four-nations invitational tournament in Tauranga, New Zealand, on Tuesday.

India also play Belgium and New Zealand apart from Japan in two separate five-day series.

India trained for four days at the Blake Park here and drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh expressed confidence for the new season.

“The mood in the team is upbeat. We have clocked some good sessions on the pitch, now we are looking forward to a good start,” said Rupinder, who will be leading the defence along with Birendra Lakra, Surender Kumar, Harmanpreet Singh, Varun Kumar and Gurinder Singh.

“This being the first tournament of the year, it is important to win some good matches to get the momentum going,” he added.

India beat Japan 5-1 in the men’s Asia Cup last year. Rupinder stressed on the need to produce consistent performance especially against teams like Olympic silver medallists Belgium, who they play in their second match on January 18. 

Dravid’s pep talk for hockey team

Members of the Indian hockey team in Tauranga, New Zealand, were in for a pleasant surprise on Tuesday, when cricketing legend Rahul Dravid paid them a visit at their training session.

Coach of the Under-19 team who are competing in the World Cup at Mount Maunganui — a venue just eight km away from the hockey stadium — Dravid decided to drop by to encourage the hockey team.

Dravid spent time with the hockey boys, greeting them individually and mentioned that the Under-19 team will be rooting for them from the stands, provided they get time off from their schedule.