Hockey World Cup starts today in Odisha
India will face Spain in the first match
7pm onwards on Star Sports and Hot Star
Bhubaneswar: The 15th Hockey World Cup will begin today in Odisha’s Bhubaneswar and Rourkela. Odisha is hosting the World Cup for the second time in a row. India was the host of the World Cup in 2018 as well.
16 teams from five continents will compete in the hockey epic that will last until January 29. The preliminary round matches are divided into four pools of four teams each. The top four teams from each pool will advance directly to the quarterfinals. The second and third placers can advance to the quarterfinals if they win the crossover round.
India is competing with England, Wales and Spain in Pool D. India’s first match is against Spain tonight at 7 pm in Rourkela. India’s other matches are against England on the 15th and Wales on the 19th. India is going to the World Cup under the leadership of Harmanpreet Singh. Malayali goalkeeper PR Sreejesh is in the Indian team.
Odisha’s victory
India getting the World Cup venue for the second time in a row is a recognition of the efforts of the Odisha government led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. Odisha is the most encouraging state for the growth of hockey. The current sponsor of the Indian team is the state of Odisha. Odisha has also prepared the Indian team for the World Cup. Odisha has given huge prize money to Indian hockey players who have won medals in Olympics and Asian Games.
Another major contribution of the Odisha government was the construction of a new stadium in Rourkela for this World Cup. Birsamunda Stadium in Rourkela has a seating capacity of 20000 people. When there was Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, this stadium was built at a cost of crores to overcome the crises of the Kovid period.
Four matches today
Today, the first day of the World Cup, there are four matches. Two matches will be played at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and two matches will be played at Birsamunda Stadium in Rourkela. Matches start at 1pm.
Argentina Vs Africa
from 1 p.m
Australia Vs France
From 3 pm
England Vs Wales
From 5 pm
India Vs Spain
From 7 pm
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Matches are played in stadiums. Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar and Birsa Munda Stadium in Rourkela. Birsa Munda Stadium, India’s largest hockey stadium, was built on the initiative of the Odisha government for this World Cup.
1975
Although India has won 12 medals including eight golds in the Olympics, India has won the World Cup only once. In 1975, the Indian team led by Ajitpal Singh won the World Cup by defeating Pakistan in the final.
2018
Belgium won the World Cup in Odisha. India lost to Holland in the quarter finals.
4
Malayali goalkeeper Sreejesh is coming to his fourth World Cup. This is Sreejesh’s third World Cup on Indian soil. Sreejesh is all set to become the first player to play three World Cups on Indian soil.
Poole A
Australia
Argentina
France
The. Africa
Pool B
Belgium
Germany
South Korea
Japan
Poole c
Holland
New Zealand
Malaysia
Chile
Pool d
India
England
Wales
Spain
Indian team
Harmanpreet Singh (Captain), Amit Rohidas (Vice-Captain), PR Sreejesh, Krishna Pathak, Armanpreet Singh, Surender Kumar, Varun Kumar, Neelam Sanjeev, Manpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Neelakanta Shar, Shamsher Singh, Vivek Sagar, Akashdeep Singh , Mandeep Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, Rajkumar Pal, Jugraj Singh.
World Cup winners so far
1971 – Pakistan
1973 – Holland
1975 – India
1978 – Pakistan
1982 – Pakistan
1986 – Holland
1990 – Holland
1994 – Pakistan
1998 – Holland
2002 – Germany
2006 – Germany
2010 – Australia
2014 – Australia
2018 – Belgium