Rourkela: After 40 group matches for over a month, it’s time to focus on the business end of the revamped Hockey India League as four teams will try to fight it out in the semifinals at the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium here on Friday and book a place in the final on Saturday.
The first match will see Table toppers Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers take on Tamil Nadu Dragons and Soorma Hockey Club will face off against Hyderabad Toofans in the next game.
After failing to impress in the first phase of the tournament, Soorma got back their form in the second phase to win two games in regular time and then win their last game via shoot-outs to book their place in the last-four stage.
While it hasn’t been an easy outing for them and even Harmanpreet Singh struggled scoring just five goals from the penalty corners in 10 games. He did manage to find the net when it mattered the most though and scored twice against the Lancers in a must-win game.
Naturally, he will look to be on the money once more and help his team make the summit clash. “We performed well under pressure in some of our recent games. But the real challenge starts now, and we want to be fully prepared. We know our strengths and weaknesses, so we’ll train and plan for the semifinals accordingly,” said the Soorma captain.
Meanwhile, Hyderabad Toofans, too, didn’t have a great tournament earning just four wins in regular time. But their forwards have done well scoring 34 goals – the second-highest in the tournament so far – and they will certainly hold the key.
As far as the clash between Bengal Tigers and Tamil Nadu Dragons is concerned, that is going to be a thrilling encounter. While Bengal Tigers finished on top of the table with six outright wins, the Dragons have the momentum on their side after edging past Rudras in the last group game to make the knockouts.
For the Bengal Tigers, a lot will depend on Jugraj Singh, who has been in phenomenal form scoring nine goals from the PCs and has a chance to be the highest scorer of the tournament.
As for the Dragons, Jip Janssen will be their key player having found the net seven times from the PCs. Thanks to him they have a 29.7% success rate from the PCs. However, they will hope to make all their chances count which wasn’t the case in their last game on Wednesday night against Rudras.
Furthermore, the Dragons are likely to enjoy all the home support thanks to their captain Amit Rohidas, who is from the region, and he is looking forward to making the most of it.
“The crowd support has been incredible, and I want to thank all the fans who came to the stadium and cheered for us. I encourage them to keep supporting us by coming out for the semifinals and showing their continued support,” he added.