With a semifinal place in the Hockey World League Final vanishing without a trace thanks to a thumping from Australia, India will look to finish as high as possible and a better result against Germany will go a long way in achieving that target.
Where to Watch Live
The India vs Germany clash is scheduled for a 3.30 pm IST start with the first match of the day beginning at 1.15 pm IST. Live coverage will be provided by Ten Sports and Ten Action in India. The matches can be watched via live streaming online for viewers around the world HERE. Note: Some areas will be Geo Blocked.
India were bruised black and blue by Australia in a 7-2 thrashing in the quarterfinals on Wednesday, and coach Terry Walsh will be hoping for some more mettle from the hosts come Friday against a side they drew 3-3 with during the group stages.
"We have been analysing the videos of all our matches and accordingly working on areas where we have been lacking," India forward SV Sunil was quoted as saying by Hockey India's official website. "Also, the pep talk by the coach motivated us to give our best on the field.
"The previous match against Australia was lost due to our silly mistakes, such as man to man marking and losing simple possession. We are working on the same to better our performance against the Olympic champions Germany."
Germany went down 2-1 to Netherlands in their quarterfinal match, and the European powerhouses will be determined to make up for what has so far been a rather disappointing tournament, considering their high standards.
"We didn't play well in the first half and some of the boys didn't do the work that they needed to," Germany coach Markus Wiese said of the Netherlands defeat. "We were much better in the second half but one good half is not enough when you are playing the best in the world. Really, I was not satisfied with the way we took our penalty corners."
The two semifinals will be between England and New Zealand and the Netherlands and Australia, with the latter in particular promising plenty of excitement.
"Playing against the Australians will be a big challenge for us tomorrow," Holland coach Paul Van Ass said on Thursday. "The focus will be to score as many goals as possible. The team will play its usual game with the aim to win the match and reach the finals. It's always great to have the entire team together as these practice session even allows us some time off."
England have been one of the best teams in the tournament so far and will rightly start as favourites against New Zealand, who edged Argentina, who take on Belgium in the opening match of Friday, in the quarterfinals courtesy a shootout.
"The boys have managed to get the desired results by not losing a single game till now," England coach Bobby Crutchley said. "This is the result of sheer hard work that the team has put in over the months and managing to keep their cool and sticking to the basics during their games.
"The key was also to convert the penalty corner chances that the team got and this helped in keeping an edge over the opponents at all times. Also individually we have been working on some players which have paid off.
"We are looking forward to our semi final clash against New Zealand and I am confident the team will again give a good show and reach the finals."
Schedule of play: Belgium vs Argentina (1.15 pm IST); Germany vs India (3.30 pm IST); England vs New Zealand (5.45 pm IST); Netherlands vs Australia (8 pm IST).
