Men's Asian Hockey 5s World Cup Qualifier: India vs Japan preview, head-to-head, prediction, and live streaming details
Indian Men's Hockey Team will take on Japan in their fifth match of the Men's Asian Hockey 5s World Cup Qualifier at Salalah in Oman. India will be playing two matches on Thursday, first taking on Malaysia followed by Japan in the evening contest.
After three matches, the Indian side is in the 3rd spot of the Elite Pool points table with two wins and a loss. They defeated Bangladesh by 15-1 and Oman by 12-2 before losing to Pakistan by 4-5.
Japan are yet to win a match in the Men's Asian Hockey 5s World Cup Qualifier. They suffered a 1-26 loss to Pakistan and a 2-18 loss to Malaysia. Meanwhile, in their third match, Oman defeated Japan by 14-4. Japan will meet Bangladesh in their 4th match before meeting India in their final league contest.
India v Japan: Match details
Match: India v Japan, Asian Hockey 5s World Cup Qualifier
Date & Time: August 31, 2023, 7.30 pm IST
Venue: Salalah, Oman
India vs Japan: Head-to-head
Indian Men's Hockey Team will meet Japan for the first time in the Hockey 5s format, though the teams have met in the regular 11-member format frequently. Their last encounter came in the Asian Champions Trophy 2023 semifinal at Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium in Chennai, where India won by 5-0.
Matches played: First meet in Hockey 5s format
- India - NA
- Japan - NA
- Draw - NA
India vs Japan: Starting 5
India
Raheel Mohammed, Mor Mandeep, Singh Maninder, Suraj Karkera and Rajbhar Pawan
Japan
Nakayama Shoki, Yasuda Musashi, Watabe Junpei, Kobori Junpei, Kobori Masataka, Takeyasu Koichi
India vs Japan: Match prediction
Indian Men's Hockey Team are expected to emerge victorious in this match against Japan. India will be aiming for a top-two finish and must win this contest to stay in the hunt and will depend on Mohammed Raheel and Maninder Singh to lead from the front.
Maninder Singh is India's top goal-scorer with nine goals, while Raheel has scored seven goals. Kobori Masataka is the leading goal-scorer for Japan with four goals from three matches. He holds the key for the Japan team.
Match Prediction: India is expected to defeat Japan in their 5th match of the Asian Hockey 5s World Cup Qualifier.
India vs Japan: Live telecast details, channel list & live score details
TV: NA
Live Streaming: Asian Hockey Federation YouTube Channel