FIH Men’s Hockey Pro League 2022-23 Preview: India take on World No 1 Netherlands, Argentina

The Men in Blue are second in the standings with 24 points from 12 matches.

The Indian men’s hockey team will take on the Netherlands and Argentina in the final leg of their European tour in the FIH Men’s Hockey Pro League 2022-23. The matches begin from Wednesday, June 6 onwards and will end on June 11, 2023. India concluded the first leg on a positive note by winning a bonus point through shoot-offs (after the match finished in a draw) against Great Britain.

India will first take on the Netherlands on June 6 and on the following day will be up against Argentina. Then after a break of two days, India will cap off its FIH Pro-League 2022-23 campaign after facing the Netherlands (June 10th) and Argentina (June 11th). The Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist were on top of the points table before their trip to Europe but after back-to-back losses against Belgium and Great Britain, they slid down to the second spot with 24 points.

The Stakes

India

After winning a match overall (apart from the shoot-off win) in the London leg, the Indian team will look to finish the FIH Men's Hockey Pro League 2022-23 on a high and get to maximum points possible. Craig Fulton started his reign with two losses playing defensively but came back strong in the next two defeating Olympic champions Belgium (5-1) and drawing Great Britain (4-4).

Netherlands

The Netherlands have only played four matches to date (wins-1, loss-1, draws-2) and are languishing in the penultimate position ahead of New Zealand in the points table. Thierry Brinkman tops the scoring charts for the Netherlands (2 goals from 4 matches). They will be facing a stern test against the second-placed team India and fifth-ranked Argentina.

Argentina

Argentina are one of the four teams to have played 12 matches each in the current edition of FIH Men's Hockey Pro League 2022-23. They are currently ranked fifth in the points table with 13 points from 12 matches (wins-2, loss-5, draws-5). Casello Maico has been the pick of the players from the South American side who has scored four goals from ten matches.

Head-To-Head

India vs Netherlands head-to-head

• Matches Played: 110
• India: 34
• Netherlands: 50
• Draw: 26

India vs Argentina head-to-head

• Matches Played: 57
• India: 31
• England: 20
• Draw: 6

Squads

India

Krishan Bahadur Pathak, PR Sreejesh, Harmanpreet Singh (Captain), Amit Rohidas, Jarmanpreet Singh, Manpreet Singh, Sumit, Sanjay, Mandeep Mor, Gurinder Singh, Hardik Singh (Vice Captain), Dilpreet Singh, Moirangthem Rabichandra Singh, Shamsher Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Abhishek, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, S Karthi, Gurjant Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Raj Kumar Pal, Mandeep Singh, Simranjeet Singh.

Netherlands

Max de Pie, Koen Bijen, Pirmin Blaak, Justen Blok, Timo Boers, MIles Bukkens, Boris Burkhardt, Thijs van Dam, Luke, Steijn Van, Tjep Hoedemakers, Jaer van der, David Huussen, Jip Janssen, Derk Meijer, Floris Middendorp, Joep Molde, Tijmen Rehenga, Pepijn Rehenga, Sheldon Schouten, Duco Telgenkamp, and Jasper Tukkers.

Argentina

Tomas Mathias Santiago, Lucas Martinez, Thomas Habif, Santiago Tarazona, Agustin Alejandro, Nicolas Cicileo, Federico Monja, Matias Rey, Lucas Toscani, Nicolas Keenan, Tadeo Marcucci, Lucio Mendez, Juan Ignacio, Martin Ferreiro, Nicolas Torre, Agustin Machellet, Agustin Bugallo, Maico Casella, Ignacio Nepote, Tomas Domene, Nehuen Hernando, Nicolas Acosta

FIH Men’s Hockey Pro League 2022-23: Indian Players to watch out for

Harmanpreet Singh

Indian skipper Harmanpreet Singh is the leading goal scorer at the FIH Men’s Hockey Pro League 2022-23 and recently became the all-time highest goal scorer of the FIH Men's Pro League surpassing Belgian Alexander Hendricks' 34 goals. The Indian drag-flicker has bounced back strongly after a dismal run at the men's Hockey World Cup. He was the go-to man in the first leg of the European leg and had a good time at the defence as well.

Manpreet Singh

The former Indian captain has adapted to his new role pretty well in the defence and at times has bifurcated the opposition half as well. In a game in the first leg, he single-handedly dodged past several players from the mid-line and earned a penalty corner. The number seven has simultaneously put in good tackles and will play a key role in the upcoming leg in the Netherlands.

What are telecast and live streaming details for India’s matches against Netherlands and Argentina?

India’s away matches against the Netherlands and Argentina in the FIH Men’s Hockey Pro League 2022-23 will be telecast on Star Sports First, Star Sports Select 2 SD, and HD platforms. The live streaming will also be available on fancode.com.

What is the schedule of India’s away matches against Netherlands and Argentina?

All the timings are in Indian Standard time

• June 7, 2023 – India vs Netherlands (11:00 pm IST)
• June 8, 2023 – India vs Argentina (8:30 pm IST)
• June 10, 2023 – India vs Netherlands (09:00 pm IST)
• June 11, 2023 – India vs Argentina (09:00 pm IST)