A round-up of Sunday's action in the men's hockey World Cup, in Rourkela.
Sania ousted from Qatar Total Open.
India were drawn against their Pakistan for an away Asia-Oceania Zone Group 1 fixture.
Spain captain Pol Amat on Sunday said they were always in control of their first hockey World Cup match against South Africa despite the half-time score of 2-2 but need to improve their performance in remaining matches if they are to qualify for semifinals.
Veteran goalkeeper PR Sreejesh on Monday said the Indian men's hockey side's main focus is qualifying for the Paris Olympics by winning the Asian Games this year besides giving opportunities to youngsters.
Akashdeep Singh will lead an 18-member Indian squad in the seventh Junior Asia Cup hockey, scheduled to be held at Malacca, Malaysia, from May 3 to 13. Defender Amit Rohidas is the vice-captain. The nine-nation tournament features Bangladesh, China, India, Iran, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey, on Wednesday, said that the national men's team will travel to Pakistan for qualifiers in case it fails to directly qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Eager to change the shade of the Tokyo bronze, the Indian men's hockey team is now focussing on directly qualifying for the Paris Olympics by winning next year's Asian Games, says young midfielder Hardik Singh.
There is yet another injury blow to India's prospect in the upcoming Asia Cup hockey tournament. The men in blue were dealt a severe blow after star forward S V Sunil had to be ruled out of August 24-September 1 event due to an elbow injury.
The age-old malady of inconsistency remained unaddressed but Indian hockey did take baby steps towards global success in 2017, a year which reaffirmed the nation's continental supremacy in the sport.
In a surprise move on Tuesday, India's women's hockey coach Harendra Singh was named chief coach of the men's team while incumbent men's in-charge Sjoerd Marijne was sent back to the women's camp -- a fallout of the poor show by Manpreet Singh and Co. in the Commonwealth Games.
It was touted as the year which could herald a change in the fortunes Indian hockey, but 2018 turned out to be yet another saga of missed opportunities for the sport.
Asian champions India have been clubbed along side arch-rivals Pakistan in the same pool in the men's Hockey World League (HWL) Semi-Final 2017 to be held in London.
For Indian hockey, 2016 was a year in which much was promised and achieved as well. It was also a year where India made significant and visible advancements but deep down somewhere the pain of missing out on an Olympic medal will remain for four more years.
North Korea's official KCNA news agency issued a brief report early on Wednesday, saying the qualifier ended in a 0-0 draw after a series of "attacks and counterattacks".
The Azlan Shah Cup is the latest sporting event to be hit by the deadly coronavirus, which has claimed more than 3,000 lives and infected 86,000 people across the world.
Olympic silver medallists Spain ended their hockey World Cup campaign on a high, defeating Asian champions Korea 2-0 to finish fifth in the mega-event and qualify for this year's Champions Trophy. With Friday's victory, Spain kept their slate clean in the fifth-sixth classification match in the World Cup, having won four in as many appearances.
A pall of gloom shrouded the Pakistan hockey community after the national team failed to qualify for the Olympics.
Goalkeeper Savita produced a stunning save in a tense shootout as India won the Asia Cup to secure qualification in next year's hockey World Cup following a nerve-wracking win over China in the final on Sunday.
The Indian junior men's team beat Pakistan in a thriller in the final of the Men's Junior Asia Cup 2023.
World No 1 Australia scored three goals in the final quarter to register their second consecutive win in Pool B at the Kalinga Stadium.
India have been the FIH's top market in the last decade or so in terms of sponsorships and monetary benefits, and the world body official stressed that the country will continue to hold its significance despite the sport spreading its wings to other parts of the world.
Indian girls kept their quarter-final hopes alive in the junior hockey World Cup with a 2-0 win over New Zealand, in Monchengladbach, Germany, on Sunday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Monday
The Indian men's hockey team, which ended a 41-year medal drought by clinching a bronze medal in Tokyo, rose to 3rd in the International Hockey Federation (FIH) World Rankings, behind Belgium and Australia, respectively.
Ritu Rani has been named captain of the 8-member Indian women's hockey team that will play the semifinals of the World League Round 3 at Rotterdam, The Netherlands from June 13.
Your chance to congratulate Dhanraj Pillay and his boys.
An inspired India battered Oman 8-0 in the opening match of the Asia Cup on Saturday.
A misfiring and inconsistent India finished a disappointing sixth in the Hero Hockey World League Semi-finals after being stunned 2-3 by lowly Canada, in London, on Sunday.
The Indian women's hockey team stunned formidable Germany 2-1 to register its second consecutive win in pool stages and assure its place in the quarter-finals of the FIH Junior World Cup in Potchefstroom on Sunday.
'Huge disappointment that we did not qualify for our third consecutive Olympics'
They beat Fiji 26-0 in a World Cup qualifying match at Suva, Fiji on Thursday.
It is important that these events do not remain one-offs. It is crucial that India sets long-term targets, and not solely depend on foreign coaches from regions that continue to produce some of the finest talents in the world, asserts Arindam Roy.
India would look to seal a direct quarterfinal berth with a win against Canada in their final Pool C match of the men's hockey World Cup on Saturday.
The same side will also compete in the World Cup qualifying tournament, against Fiji and New Zealand, from November 15-18.
D Gukesh credited mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton for helping him tame the 'emotional pressure' of competing at the World Chess Championship.
The other teams in India's pool are Spain, New Zealand and hosts Japan. The Pool B is made up of Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Great Britain, Canada and South Africa in the groupings announced by world governing body FIH on Saturday.
On-field achievements often jostled for space with off-field drama as Indian hockey endured a rollercoaster year during which the players scripted historical feats but coach Paul van Ass' acrimonious ouster and Gurbaj Singh's suspension created its share of storm.
Consolation bronze in Asiad can't heal our pain, says hockey captain Sreejesh
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Tuesday
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