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Indian hockey juniors face Belgium (Preview)
Breda (The Netherlands): After two consecutive wins, India will look to continuing the good work when they face Belgium in a league match of the Volvo International Under-21 hockey tournament here on Tuesday.
Playing a quick counter-attacking game, the Indian colts secured wins over Germany (3-0) and New Zealand (3-0) in their first two matches. Riding on drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh’s brilliant form, the midfielder Harjeet Singh-led team is confident of extending its winning run.
“We are very happy with our performance till now and winning against Germany and New Zealand is really an inspiring factor for our team and we will take this confidence to our next match,” Harjeet said in a release on Monday.
“We have seen Belgium team’s matches and they are very good in a few areas. They have some good players and we have to restrict their moves. The players are confident and we will play for the win tomorrow.”
Belgium stunned home team the Netherlands with a 3-3 draw in their previous match. The European team comprises of some talented players and the Indians will again have to raise their game.
India coach Harendra Singh said even though his wards have performed well, he wants them to further sharpen their game.
“We are satisfied with our efforts and results of the team till now. The boys are playing very well and implementing strategies in a good manner,” Harendra, who guided Ranchi Rays to Hockey India League (HIL) title this year, said.
“But we still need to work on few areas and improve our game for the upcoming matches. We can’t take any team lightly and we will play against Belgium with the same intensity as we have in the previous matches.
“We would like to continue our winning streak and boys are ready for the next battle.”
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Sunil Gavaskar gives his opinion of GT allrounder Rahul Tewatia
The left-handed batsman from Haryana is garnering praise from all quarters for the way he’s finishing games regularly in the most exciting IPL season.
Gavaskar reckons Tewatia’s whirlwind knock in Sharjah (in IPL 2020) where he smashed West Indies pacer Sheldon Cottrell for five sixes in an over, gave him the confidence that he belongs to the big stage.
Speaking on Cricket Live on Star Sports, Gavaskar said, “That assault on Sheldon Cottrell in Sharjah gave him the belief to do the impossible and the confidence that he belongs here. We saw the impossible (he did with the bat) the other day as well. There’s no twitching or touching the pads (which shows a batter’s nervousness) when he bats in the death overs. He just waits for the ball to be delivered and plays his shots. He’s got all the shots in the book, but most importantly his temperament to stay cool in a crisis is brilliant.”
Gavaskar has also nicknamed the 28-year-old cricketer the ‘ice-man’ and lauded Tewatia’s ability to remain unruffled during the tense moments.