Croatia beat Brazil in the quarter-finals, but for Dalic, Saturday's bronze medal game was the highlight of their tournament.
The difference in rating does not count much but going by form and records, India's numero uno player R Praggnanandhaa will start as one of the favourites in the third edition of Grand Chess Tour rapid and blitz tournament in Zagreb, Croatia, starting on Wednesday.
IMAGES from the FIFA World Cup semi-final between Argentina and Croatia played at Lusail Stadium on Tuesday.
Grand Chess Tour: Gukesh in joint lead with Carlsen and Wesley So after day one
Captain Luca Modric, who with Ivan Perisic and Dejan Lovren forms a high class but ageing core to the team, says they fear no-one and they will have done their homework on the Samurai Blue.
"Mateo, Luka and Marcelo are the best Croatia midfield in history. I don't think it can be repeated. When you pass them the ball it is safer than having your money in the bank," the defender said.
'We had a fantastic goalkeeper today, Livakovic, he was great, he was insurmountable, he defended the penalties in a very strong, stable manner.'
The fans were in full voice during the national anthems and the stadium was bouncing.
Modric said it was important to respect opponents in Qatar, including Morocco, describing the players as phenomenal and highly motivated.
Croatia and Morocco will face off in Qatar for a second time after playing out a 0-0 draw in their group opener
Images from the FIFA World Cup Group F match between Morocco and Croatia on Wednesday.
Australia beat Croatia 2-1 on Friday in Malaga, Spain, to reach the Davis Cup final for the first time in 19 years and will next face either Canada or Italy.
The intricate play and tight triangles Croatia were attempting only had to falter in a tiny way, and when they did Argentina were ready to pounce.
Croatia coach Zlatko Dalic admitted his team rode their luck against Belgium but said he was pleased with the way they controlled the match for large stretches.
Spain's late substitute Joselu struck two quick-fire goals on his debut to seal a 3-0 win over Norway
Croatia thrives on being considered underdogs and warned that the 2018 World Cup runners-up have what it takes to reach the final again.
Images from the FIFA World Cup Quarter-final match between Croatia and Brazil on Friday.
Dominic Thiem defeated qualifier Facundo Bagnis of Argentina 6-4, 7-5 in the first round of the Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag
Naomi Osaka tumbled out of the Berlin Open first round on Tuesday
'Modi is such a Prime Minister who always thinks about Sikhs. All the pending issues of Sikhs, which have not been resolved to date, are being resolved, including the Kartarpur Sahib corridor. There should not be such protests against him, and no Sikh can tolerate this'
Top seed Carlos Alcaraz overcame Croatia's Marin Cilic to reach the round of 16 at the Qatar Open.
"What I've seen so far, when you take a look at their selection of players, their quality, skills and value, then it is indeed terrifying."
French Open champion Gauff is in line for a clash with fellow American Jessica Pegula.
Emotional after Canada's solid performance against the second-ranked team in the world, Herdman drew the attention of Croatian media after he said his team would go and "eff Croatia".
Images from the FIFA World Cup match between Croatia and Japan on Monday.
Images from the FIFA World Cup third place playoff match between Croatia and Morocco on Saturday.
Dr Karan Gupta offers guidance on how to pick the right international course and university.
Real Madrid maestro Luka Modric is poised to make his first move into club ownership with a minority stake at Swansea City.
The four countries were winners of their respective League A groups last year and compete in the mini-tournament in mid-year to decide the 2022-23 title.
Veteran Indian tennis star Rohan Bopanna and his Chinese partner Zhang Shuai entered the quarter-finals in the mixed doubles at the Australian Open after receiving a walkover in a second round match in Melbourne on Sunday.
Yuki Bhambri and his Australian partner Alexei Popyrin upset World No 1 pair of Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic in the round of 16 match at the Dubai Tennis Championships.
Croatia were not the favourites to reach the last four again but they came through two penalty shootouts in a repeat of their 2018 exploits.
A round-up of Friday's action in the UEFA Nations League.
Glimpses from Sunday's Nations League matches.
A reshuffled France drew 1-1 away to Croatia in their second Nations League game on Monday, four days after an opening defeat by Denmark.
A round-up of Sunday's Nations League second leg quarter-final matches.
Ivan Rakitic an integral part of the Croatia side who reached the World Cup final in Russia before losing 4-2 to France.
Safiullin upsets Muller, Moutet through in Mallorca
The Kananaskis gathering on June 16-17 is the Prime Minister's 6th consecutive participation in the G7 Summit.
Luka Modric has played almost 600 games for Real and won nearly 30 trophies including a record six Champions League titles and four LaLiga trophies.
