India vs Spain, Hockey World Cup: When and where to watch

After ending a medal drought in the Tokyo Olympics after over four decades, hopes are high from the Indian team to finish at the podium in the Hockey World Cup too.

The Harmanpreet Singh-led team with take on Spain today at the newly constructed Birsa Munda hockey stadium in Rourkela, which is expected to remain jam-packed.

"We are going with the same mentality as that of the Olympics in this tournament. We have an opportunity to make this World Cup a memorable moment of our lifetime. So, we are hoping for a good start from the first match," Harmanpreet said before the match.

Adding that the Olympic medal win has not put any pressure, the captain added, "There is no pressure on us. We know our roles well. We will play our usual style and focus on our planning. Everyone knows their responsibility."

India is tied with England, Spain and Wales in Pool D. In terms of rankings, England is ranked 5th and is only team ranked higher than India (6th). While Spain is ranked 8th, Wales comes at the 15th position, making the pool a tricky one.

"When we come to the Olympics or the World Cup, every group is difficult and everyone thinks they have the most difficult pool. Any team that comes to the World Cup is ready to play and win. We have teams like England, Spain and Wales in our pool and we have played all three of them in the last 12 months. We are confident going in. But we need to be playing our best," coach Graham Reid said.

Even though the coach in an exclusive interview to the Bridge had clarified that there will be no over-dependence on Harmanpreet, who will be crucial during India's penalty corners, there is clearly a lot of hopes riding on him.

Read: No over-dependence on Harmanpreet Singh': Graham Reid confident before Hockey WC

"Harman chala to team chalega (If Harman clicks, the team will click). Our strong point is our drag flick expert," Hockey India captain Dilip Tirkey had told the Bridge in an exclusive interaction earlier.

Head to head

As per the FIH, India and Spain have faced each other 30 times. While India has won 13 matches, Spain has won 11 and 6 matches were tied.

India last faced Spain in the FIH Pro League where it lost one and drew another match.

When and Where to watch

India will play Spain at 7pm in Rourkela.

The matches will be live on Star Sports Select 2, Star Sports Select 2 HD, Star Sports First.

The live stream will also be available on Disney+ Hotstar and watch.hockey app. You can also follow live coverage on The Bridge.