Asian Champions India set sight on Hockey 5s World Cup title

Reigning Asian Champions India have their eyes set on the world title in the upcoming FIH Men's Hockey5s World Cup scheduled from January 24-31 in Muscat, Oman.

India has been clubbed alongside Egypt, Switzerland, and Jamaica in Pool B of the upcoming FIH Men's Hockey5s World Cup. Sixteen national teams will compete in the inaugural edition of the tournament and they have been divided into four groups of four teams each.

India earned their qualification for the tournament after beating Pakistan 4-4 (2-0 SO) at the inaugural Men's Hockey5s Asia Cup at Salalah, Oman on Saturday.

Talking about the competition, Mandeep Mor, who led the Indian team as Captain in the tournament said, "We will not take any teams lightly. We have a good time to prepare for the tournament and we will look to improve in certain areas. We will also study our opponents thoroughly and see their match footage to get an understanding of what we can expect."

"There are some really strong teams that have qualified for the inaugural edition of the FIH Men's Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024. Everyone will enter the tournament with the hopes of becoming the first-ever World Champions and we want to do that as well. We will focus on our own game and try to stick to our game plans to achieve positive results," Mandeep added.

The memorable Final of the Men's Hockey5s Asia Cup went right down to the wire and was eventually decided in the ShootOut. Mohammed Raheel (19', 26') Jugraj Singh (7'), and Maninder Singh (10') were on target in the regulation time, while Gurjot Singh and Maninder Singh scored for India in the ShootOut to script the 4-4 (2-0 SO) win against neighboring rivals Pakistan.

Speaking on India's showing in the tournament, Mandeep Mor said, "We performed well and we stuck to our plans. We had to face some tough situations during the matches when we were trailing. But we kept our composure and managed to maintain a positive frame of mind. We felt we kept growing as a unit throughout the competition, and hence we were able to win the trophy."

"The tournament has helped us grow our confidence in heaps and bounds. We feel we have learned a lot about our strengths and the areas where we can improve. We will hope to continue our momentum and hope to get a podium finish at the inaugural FIH Men's Hockey5s World Cup Oman 2024," Mandeep Mor signed off.