A host of hockey stars have reached Odisha for the most prestigious tournament of the year – the 15th FIH Men’s Tournament Mega Hockey Mahakumbh. World The Cup 2023 will be played in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela from January 13-29.
For the first time, the FIH Men’s World Cup will be hosted by a country twice in a row since the 2018 edition was hosted in Bhubaneswar, with Belgium defeating the Netherlands to win their maiden title.
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As the 16 best teams from around the world gear up for the prestigious event, here is a look at some of the players who will be eyeing the mega event:
PR Sreejesh (India)
Experienced Indian goalkeeper PR Sreejesh has been instrumental in India’s performance. He was also voted FIH Goalkeeper of the Year in 2022. He has cemented his place among the best goalkeepers in the world thanks to his quality instincts which makes him effective in penalty shoot-out situations.
During the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Sreejesh saved a penalty corner in the last few seconds of the bronze medal match against Germany. India ended a four-decade drought for Olympic medals. There are many more such instances where the star goalkeeper has been a vital cog in India’s success.
Sreejesh’s presence as a goalkeeper as well as a mentor helped the team reach third place in the FIH World Rankings, the country’s best ever position.
The presence of a triple Olympian, who has over 240 international matches, will be a big boost for the Indian side in World Cup 2023. This will probably be Sreejesh’s last World Cup, it will be exciting to watch Indian hockey wallop his skills in front of home fans.
Harmanpreet Singh (India)
The team’s leading drag-flicker, Harmanpreet Singh has been touted as a key cog in the resurgence of Indian hockey in recent years. The penalty corner specialist’s powerful flicks as well as his world-class defense have earned Harmanpreet a lot of recognition.
Harmanpreet was instrumental in India’s historic bronze medal win at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. He finished as the country’s top scorer at the Tokyo Olympics with six goals. It was Harmanpreet who drew India level with Germany in the bronze medal match, before goals from Rupinder Pal Singh and Simranjit Singh earned India their 12th medal at the Olympics.
Akashdeep Singh (India)
Since making his debut in 2012, Akashdeep Singh has been India’s goal-scoring machine. Apart from Sreejesh and Harmanpreet, he is the only player to have more than 200 international caps. He has over 80 international goals under his belt. He will be the most experienced forward in the Indian lineup and a lot will depend on him to marshal the Indian forward line.
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At the 2014 FIH Hockey World Cup in The Hague, the 28-year-old was India’s top scorer with five goals to his credit. After missing out on the Tokyo bus in 2020 due to his poor form, Akashdeep has added several dimensions to his impressive skill set.
In the five-match Test against Australia in 2022, Akashdeep scored a hat-trick in India’s 5-4 defeat in the opening match and scored the winning goal in the third match to help India break a 12-match winless streak against world No. 1 got help. 1 Australian side.
Vivek Sagar Prasad (India)
Vivek Sagar Prasad has been at the forefront of the team at different stages. The midfielder was part of the senior team that won a bronze medal at Tokyo 2020 and led the Under-21 team to a third-place finish in the seventh edition of the Sultan of Johor Cup in Malaysia.
Returning to the side after missing out on the recent tour of Australia and the FIH Hockey Pro League due to an ankle injury, the promising youngster will prove to be a major threat to the opposition with his defence-splitting passes.
Eddie Ockenden (Aus)
The midfielder was also part of the Australian team that won bronze at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics. Ockenden not only helped the midfielders and forwards create goalscoring opportunities, but also scored 72 international goals. He was part of the national team that won the 2010 World Cup and 2014 World Cup in New Delhi and The Hague respectively.
Ockenden has made nine Champions Trophy appearances for Australia, helping his team to two gold medals in 2009 and 2011.
The 25-year-old has vast experience as he has played the most number of international matches for Australia at the senior level. Ockenden has been featured in four consecutive Olympics, including one silver (2020) and two bronze medals (2008, 2012).
Alexander Hendrickx (Belgium)
Belgium’s star defender Alexander Hendrik played a key role in helping Belgium win the country’s first Olympic title in hockey at Tokyo 2020. He scored 14 goals and ended the campaign as the tournament’s top scorer.
He was named as the highest goal scorer of the tournament in the 2018 World Cup along with Australia’s Grovers Blake, with seven goals under his belt. The 29-year-old drag-flick king has 150 senior international appearances and has scored 89 goals so far.
Matt Grambusch (Germany)
The 30-year-old midfielder has played a total of 161 matches and scored 51 goals. Grambush will be appearing in his third World Cup. He also won an Olympic bronze in Rio and a few European Championships medals, but had yet to be on the podium at Worlds. Make it the third time a charm The 30-year-old skipper will aim to be on the podium in India.
Thierry Brinkmann (Netherlands)
Thierry Brinkmann has 140 caps to his name. He has so far scored 55 goals for the Dutch side. Brinkmann was also named in the 2018 World Cup squad and featured in every match. Furthermore, he scored in every single match he played in the 2018 edition, but the Netherlands lost to Belgium in the final. The 27-year-old striker would like to finish what was left unfinished in 2018.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)