A junior World Cup is often a platform where boys become men and promising youngsters turn into future stars. Over the years, Indian hockey has seen the emergence of some of the best players from the FIH Junior World Cup.
The first time India won the competition was way back in 2001, which brought strikers Gagan Ajit Singh, Deepak Thakur and Prabhjot Singh to the forefront along with drag-flick ace Jugraj Singh.
It wasn't until 2016 that India staked claim to the trophy again with the likes of Mandeep Singh, Harmanpreet Singh, Varun Kumar, Simranjeet Singh and Sumit Kumar going on to make it count in the senior side.
After a fourth-place finish in the previous edition held in Bhubaneswar, Uttam Singh and Co will eye a podium finish, when they begin their campaign against Korea in Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
The team, coached by veteran CR Kumar, has relatively easy league matches in Pool C. With a world ranking of 3, they are the highest-ranked team in the pool which also includes Korea (11), Spain (6) and Canada (14).
If India stick to their plan of breaking down the match by the quarter and fighting till the end, they shouldn’t have much trouble topping the pool.
The Indian side will draw inspiration from their commanding performance during their fourth Junior Asia Cup title win in June this year. India will expect their experienced captain Uttam to lead from the front.
Also in focus will be proven talent Araijeet Singh Hundal. Also, the team will bank on the fact that the core has been relatively unchanged over the past two years.
Uttam, who was part of the 2021 squad, which suffered a 2-4 loss to Germany in the semifinals, is keen to make amends.
“The last time around we had to face the bitter disappointment of losing the 3rd/4th place match to France but the team has bounced back and the bond between players is stronger than ever,” he said. “Now, we are determined to bring the trophy back home to India.”
India Schedule (IST)
Dec 5: vs South Korea, 3:30 pm
Dec 7: vs Spain, 5:30 pm
Dec 8: vs Canada, 3:30 pm
