Hockey mania continues to grow with the ongoing popular Hockey Pro League Men’s. On 8th February, India will fight against Belgium for the first time in this edition of the hockey tournament. The match will set in motion at 5 PM in Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar. Belgium finished off last season as runners-up and they are currently placed at No. 1 spot on the points table. Popularly known as the Red Lions, Belgium has garnered 12 points with 3 wins out of 4 contests (one drawn). India has occupied the fifth spot with total 5 points with only one victory and a draw.
Belgium started their campaign on a good note by dismantling the defending champions Australia and then, New Zealand in the double header. They will continue to maintain their winning streak. India will appear in this game after 2 massive wins against the Netherlands, especially in the first match where they clinched 5-2 victory. They will fancy their chances of smashing the visitors on their home soil. India needs two victories to dethrone Belgium from the top spot in the rankings table, so this match is important for both the sides to assert their dominance on the field.
After this face-off, the two franchises will confront each other once again on 9th February at 5 PM at the same venue.
Probable Playing XI
India
PR Sreejesh, Harmanpreet Singh (VC), Gurinder Singh, Amit Rohidas, Manpreet Singh (C), Vivek Sagar Prasad, Chinglensana Singh, Gurjant Singh, S V Sunil, Mandeep Singh, Gursahibjit Singh,
Belgium
Thomas Briels (c), Arthur Van Doren, Loic Van Doren (Gk), Nicolas Poncelet, John-John Dohmen, Cedric Charlier, Sebastien Dockier, Gauthier Boccard, Tom Boon, Florent van Aubel and Tommy Willems
Key Players
India
Mandeep Singh
Chinglensana Singh
Belgium
Thomas Briels
Arthur Van Doren
