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Germany power way to quarters

GERMANY played “catch me if you can” with Malaysia, unintentionally obviously, while the Netherlands did the tango with Pakistan, before both the European giants sealed comfortable wins in their final pool matches.

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Indervir Grewal in Bhubaneswar

GERMANY played “catch me if you can” with Malaysia, unintentionally obviously, while the Netherlands did the tango with Pakistan, before both the European giants sealed comfortable wins in their final pool matches.

With top spot sealed, Germany had no reason to fret over their final pool match. Malaysia had to win or even draw to get into contention for the knockouts. But Malaysia were slow to start, and Germany hit the ground running. They were 3-0 up by the 18th minute. But then they took their foot off the pedal and let Malaysia catch up with two quick penalty corner goals. They raised their level again and regained the three-goal lead. They got another wakeup call in the 42nd minute when Razie Rahim got his second penalty corner goal. That was enough for the Germans who didn’t let up again before getting another goal near the end for a 5-3 win.

Needing a win or a draw to finish second in the pool, the Dutch had a perfect start by making it 1-0 in the seventh minute. Pakistan had to get a draw to ensure the third-place finish. With Malaysia’s goal difference negative nine, even a loss by seven goals would have ensured Pakistan them a place in the knockouts. But Pakistan were going for a win. They were looking to attack but without much planning or structure in their game. Their chaotic style got the Dutch to lose their focus and they matched Pakistan step for step in a frenzied first half. Umar Bhutta’s ninth-minute equaliser only made the Dutch more nervous.

But the second half was mostly about the Dutch. The late goal before the halftime whistle had settled the nerves. The Dutch ended up scoring three more for a 5-1 win, but from Pakistan’s perspective, it was a margin that kept them in the tournament. Pakistan will play Belgium on Tuesday. The winner of that match will play Germany. The Dutch will take on Canada on Tuesday, and that match’s winner will face India in the quarterfinals on Thursday.


Long-drawn schedule leaves teams empty-pocketed, restless

 With over 10 teams training in one day, the 14th edition has become a tournament of training sessions. The number of teams training has even gone up to 13 on some days. The international hockey federation’s (FIH) experiment with 16 teams has been welcomed but holding just two matches per day has made the current edition the longest in World Cup’s history, spread across 19 days. The pool stage ended on Sunday after 12 days, out of which some days saw both matches being tedious. With breaks between matches lasting up to five days, the tournament has tested the patience of players and coaches alike. One of the biggest challenges for the team managements has been to keep their players physically and mentally ready for the games. Teams have kept busy by visiting temples in the city, taking daytrips to Puri, visiting schools or going saree shopping. Some have even been playing cards in their hotels to kill time, Belgium’s Arthur van Doren said. Some players, however, have used the long breaks to study for their exams. But World Cup is not an event for relaxing. Teams have been asking for extra training sessions. But waiting and preparing without seeing any action for long periods also led to restlessness. Having qualified directly for the quarterfinals, India’s next match will be on December 13, four days after their match against Canada.

Financial strain

The length of the tournament has also put financial strain on the visiting teams. At the World Cup, visiting teams cover their own expenses. Hockey is an amateur sport, and not many federations across the globe are as financially secure as Hockey India. “The tournament is spread over three weekends and that is too long, especially in terms of finance,” England coach Danny Kerry said. Instead of two matches, FIH could have held four matches like in the previous editions. Even the Women’s World Cup, with the new 16-team format, had four matches per day. It would have made for exciting days and the length of the tournament would have reduced considerably. — IG

Today’s matches 

England vs NZ, 4.45pm 

France vs China, 7pm

Live on Star Sports

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