Hockey's Future Stars Arrive: Argentina, Bangladesh Reach Chennai for Jr. World Cup

The prestigious 24-team event will take place in Chennai and Madurai. India, the host nation, arrived in Chennai over the weekend. Bangladesh's team reached on Tuesday, and Argentina landed in Tamil Nadu's capital on Wednesday, fueling excitement for the marquee event where Argentina will defend their title.

Earlier on Saturday, the Indian Junior Men’s Hockey Team reached Chennai in preparation for the highly anticipated tournament.

As two-time Junior World Cup Champions, India plans to leverage home advantage to reclaim the prestigious title they last won in 2016 in Lucknow.

The Indian team is in Pool B alongside Chile, Switzerland, and Oman, coached by legendary former India goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, with Rohit as captain. The India Colts are confident about the tournament after a solid performance at the recent Sultan of Johor Cup in Malaysia, where they won the silver medal.

Ahead of the tournament, the junior team faced top international opponents at the Four Nations Tournament in Berlin earlier this year, then went on a European tour through Belgium, Germany, and the Netherlands. Since then, they have undergone intensive training during camps in Bengaluru and are now prepared to showcase their skills on the big stage.

Originally, Pakistan were placed in Group B alongside India, Chile, and Switzerland, but the Pakistan Hockey Federation (PHF) decided to withdraw its team after consulting its government, and Oman replaced them in the draw.

Full draw:

Pool A: Germany, South Africa, Canada, Ireland

Pool B: India, Oman, Chile, Switzerland

Pool C: Argentina, New Zealand, Japan, China

Pool D: Spain, Belgium, Egypt, Namibia

Pool E: Netherlands, Malaysia, England, Austria

Pool F: France, Australia, Korea, Bangladesh

- IANS