The time for Sardar Singh and his men to show their class is here, as India get set to face Belgium in the semifinal of the Hockey World League Final 2015 on Saturday in Raipur.
Roelant Oltmans' side have to produce a memorable display in front of their home fans today with an eye to make it to the summit clash of the prestigious competition and give a massive challenge to Australia. The Kookaburras made their way to the final following a 3-2 win over Netherlands yesterday.
India come into this game at the backdrop of a huge 2-1 victory over Great Britain in the quarterfinals, but will that winning confidence continue this time as well? That remains the million dollar question. Sardar Singh and co. started the tournament with a 3-0 loss against Argentina, and then went on to draw 1-1 against Germany.
India lost to Netherlands in their third group game to finish bottom.
"If you ask me whether we will be able to give a performance like this one [against Great Britain) again, then frankly speaking I am not sure about it," Oltmans said prior to the match.
India's star dragflicker VR Raghunath, who scored the opening goal in the match against GB in the quarterfinals, however, remains positive.
"We learned from the mistakes that we made in the pool matches and we know that we can upset any team in the world on any given day. We will relax, rest and focus on the semifinal match," Raghunath said.
Belgium are a difficult opponent for India. The Red Lions may come into this game after a narrow win over Argentina in the quarterfinals. India need to be wary of their opponents, who recorded a massive 7-2 victory over Canada in a group encounter.
The Red Lions are willing to continuing their impressive form today as well. "It is a big honour to play India in India, so it is something that the whole team is really looking forward to," Belgium defender Arthur Van Doren said.
"These are the kind of games that you train all year for, the chance to play against a good Indian side in a big stadium. We will prepare well and try to get the victory."
Where to watch live
Hockey World League semifinal: India vs Belgium, is scheduled for a 6:30 local time (1pm GMT, 8 am EST) start with live TV coverage in India on Star Sports 1/HD and starsports.com and Hotstar.
UK viewers can catch the game live on BT Sport, with live streaming option on Watch BT Sport.
Viewers in Australia and US can watch the game on Fox Sports and Willow TV, respectively, with the live stream options on FoxTel and Willow Online. In Canada, ATN is the destination.
