Indian junior men's hockey team qualifies for World Cup

The Indian Junior Men's Hockey team confirmed their spot in the FIH Junior Men's World Cup 2023, scheduled to be held between December 5-16 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, as announced by Hockey India via Twitter on Monday.

The juniors are currently playing in the Asia Cup 2023 in Oman, where they are set to play in the semi-finals after an unbeaten run in the group stage. India registered a 1-0 victory over Chinese Taipei, a 3-1 win against Japan, and a 17-0 thrashing of Thailand apart from a hard-fought 1-1 draw against arch-rivals Pakistan.

"I have got faith in this team. Obviously the Asia Cup was a qualifier for the World Cup, this was the only qualifier for us to prove our worth. This was our ultimate choice to be in the World Cup without any hassles," coach CR Kumar said.

"We won the Johor Cup and came with this confidence here, but winning one tournament is not enough. Our main target is the World Cup," India captain Uttam Singh said.

India will either face Malaysia or South Korea in the semi-finals which are scheduled to take place on 31st May, 2023.