Bhubaneswar: Their shoulders are burdened with weight of expectations but it won’t be easy for India to end a 43-year long wait when they take on mighty Netherlands in the quarterfinal of the men’s hockey World Cup, here on Thursday.
Boasting a rich hockey legacy, India last played in the semi-final of the World Cup way back in 1975 when they went on to lift their maiden title.
Of late, the game has witnessed an upward trend in the country but the history does not favour the hosts against the mighty Dutchmen, whom the Indians have never beaten in the World Cup.
In the six earlier meetings at the quadrennial event, Netherlands defeated India five times while one ended in a draw.
And if Manpreet Singh and his men get past the Dutch on Thursday, they will not only break a jinx but also rewrite history and ink their names in the one of the golden chapters of the Indian hockey.
Going by present form and rankings, there is hardly anything to differentiate between the two sides.
While the Netherlands are placed fourth in the current world rankings, India are a rung below in the fifth position.
The last time India and the Netherlands faced each in the Champions Trophy earlier this, the match had ended 1-1.
The over-all head-to-head record belongs to Netherlands. In the 105 games played between the two sides so far, India have won 33, lost 48 while the rest ended in draws.
However, the two sides have shared the spoils since 2013. India and Netherlands have faced each other nine times since 2013, winning four apiece while one game finished in a draw.
And for India captain Manpreet Singh past results hold significance.
“The past results matter a lot because Netherlands have a better result against us. But, we have played well against them recently. The match will be tough and whichever team plays better will win,” Manpreet said.
The India-Netherlands duel is expected to be a fast-paced, attacking encounter with both the teams heavily relying on their goal scoring abilities to come out winners.
Both teams have scored heavily in the poll stages. While India have scored 12 goals and conceded three, the Dutch have pumped in 18 goals and conceded five.
In the likes of captain Billy Bakker, Seve van Ass, Jeroen Hertzberger, Mirco Pruijser, Thiery Brinkman, the Dutch have got plenty of experience in the midfield and its strike force. It will be a real test for the Indian defence on Thursday.
The Indians too would be relying on their strikers — Mandeep Singh, Simranjeet Singh, Lalit Upadhyay and Akashdeep Singh — to continue their good work.
Meanwhile in the first quarterfinal, Germany will take on Belgium.
