India versus New Zealand: Day 8 of Sultan Azlan Shah Cup – Preview
The Men’s hockey team of New Zealand will play against India on the eighth day of the 20th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, taking place at the Sultan Azlan Shah Hockey Stadium, in Ipoh, on May 12.
Indian Team
India with absence of many senior players failed to continue its winning-streak against Pakistan and lost the last game by two goals, 3-1. Despite the fact, they opened the Azlan Shah Cup unimpressively and lost the opening match against South Korea. The
Indian team, under the captainship of Arjun Halappa, revived it up and managed two victories against Great Britain and the host Malaysia. The game between India and the world champions Australia ended with a draw while they lost to arch-rival Pakistan by two
goals.
Many of senior players from the Indian side are not part of the squad due to various reasons. Former Indian skipper, Rajpal Singh and Tushar Khandekar are facing injuries, while seasoned drag-flickers Sandeep Singh and Sardara Singh were not considered for
the final line-up. The latter two were competing in Belgium Hockey League, therefore failed to report timely in the training camp and resultantly dropped from the side.
India, which is scheduled to play the Olympics qualifier, will have to prove its worth in the seven-nation invitational to boost up their courage. They formerly ruled over the sport for decades by winning four Olympics, five Azlan Shah Cups, one World Cup,
two Asian Games and two Asia Cups.
New Zealand
Alike the India, the New Zealand team commenced the Azlan Shah Cup with an unfortunate defeat from the Greenshirts, on the very first day of the invitational. Contrary to expectations, they failed to display competitive performance in front of the Malaysian
spectators and lost the game by two goals. In the very next game against South Korea, they managed a draw at one-all.
In the later stage, they defeated the host team of Malaysia by a single goal before receiving a defeat from Great Britain. They are holding the second position at the bottom line with one victory, one draw and two losses.
The Black Sticks are currently missing few senior players including, Shea McAleese and Phil Burrows. On the other side, James Coughlan and Simon Child were also not considered for the final list due to injuries. In absence of the experienced players, Dean
Couzins is running the squad as a skipper. Matt L’Huillier showed wonderful performances in the previous games ahead of the Azlan Shah tourney.
Players to watch
From the Black Sticks, Stephan Graham will be the shine out performer in the field that has exhibited a positive impression in the event. From the other side, Arjun Halappa and Rupinder Pal Singh will be centre of attention.
Head-to-Head statistics – Prediction
In the practice match, India defeated the Black Sticks by a single point and boosted their players for the upcoming fixtures.
Nonetheless, India has the potential to defeat their opponents, as evident from the practice match that they defeated the Black Sticks. However, the contest has all the elements for an alluring match with 50-50 odds.
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