India looks to bounce back against formidable Australia in FIH Pro League

ANTWERP: Low on confidence after four successive defeats, a struggling India will be desperate to arrest the slide and stay in contention for the top prize when it takes on a formidable Australia in the men’s FIH Pro League on Saturday.

The European leg of the tournament has been disappointing for the Indian men’s hockey team, which suffered 1-2 and 2-3 losses to Olympic champions Netherlands in Amstelveen, followed by back-to-back defeats against Argentina.

Ranked fifth with 15 points from 12 games, India needs to bounce back strongly against Australia to collect crucial points and remain in the race for a top-three finish.

“A win against Australia will be very critical for us, as it will not only help us gain crucial points but also give the team a winning momentum,” said captain Harmanpreet Singh, who had missed the last match due to a finger injury, in a release.

“We’ve had a few close games in the last four matches, and while we have been on the losing end, we want to change that and get some wins under our belts.”

While poor penalty-corner conversions and the recurring issue of conceding late goals cost the team dearly against the Netherlands, it was sloppy defending that led to a 3-4 defeat to Argentina in the first game. In the second, a potential equaliser from a late penalty was disallowed as India went down 1-2.

India also struggled to earn penalty corners, managing only three compared to Argentina’s eight.

Up against a strong Australian side, India can ill afford any more slip-ups and will have to play out of their skins to turn their fortunes around.

Currently ranked world number 7, India will look to draw confidence from its win over former world number one Australia during the Paris Olympics Pool stage.

India will conclude its European leg with two matches against Belgium on June 21 and 22.