The FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup in Chennai has been building towards its final stage. In that context, for a spot in the summit clash, India and 7-time junior World Champions, Germany, are set to face each other in potentially an electric encounter.
After passing through a tough Belgian challenge, now it’s a test against Germany’s tactical rigid structure. On Sunday, in Chennai’s Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium, the hosts will be eyeing a summit clash after nine long years. The last time they made it was in Lucknow, where India lifted their second title.
The host team so far has enjoyed an unblemished record. In the group stage, they were unbeaten with a clean sheet, scoring 29 goals without conceding a single one. In the quarterfinal, they faced their first tough test against Belgium, that culminated into a dramatic shootout after a tight 2-2 finish at the final whistle, where India prevailed 4-3.
The star of the quarterfinal was undoubtedly goalkeeper, Princedeep Singh. The young custodian mirrored the heroics of his coach PR Sreejesh and helped India win with his two exquisite saves in the shootout. His performance, along with that of Sharda Nand Tiwari and captain Rohit Ekka, highlighted that this team can thrive under pressure.
The biggest asset for the young Indian brigade has also been the roar of the Chennai crowd which worked as the twelfth man, elevating the energy levels and pressurising the opposition.
The defending champions Germany have displayed their own brand of hockey throughout the tournament. Germany’s play so far in the tournament has been typically characterised by their high-pressing game in forward line and tactical maturity when it comes to clinical finishing.
The boys from Deutschland won all their games in the group phase. They then beat France in the quarter-final. Their defence was anchored by goalkeeper Jasper Ditzer, who was instrumental in the shootout against the French colts. While their top scorer Jonas von Gersum and Ben Hashbach will test the Indian defence.
India has relied heavily on the drag flick expertise of Nand Tiwari in the last few matches, while in the forward line, India didn’t capitalise properly after breaching the circle. The final touch seems to be missing and that was visible in the last encounter where the host team didn’t find any field goal. They also lost possession multiple times. The other big challenges will be Germany’s penalty corner battery that will test India’s first rushers and Princedeep Singh’s agility.
Head Coach Sreejesh also stressed on these two problems and he demanded “containment and conversion” from his young brigade against the German side.
“We have to score. That’s really important. This high concession rate is simply unacceptable against a team of Germany’s quality,” said Sreejesh, after the quarterfinal victory. “We need to convert them. After entering the circle, you can’t give away ball possession. It’s an easy thing to fix. The second is defense. If your defence is strong, you can score and win.”
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