IND vs RUS Dream11 Prediction Team: Hosts India look to begin their campaign on the forefront when they take on a tricky Russian opposition
India Vs Russia FIH Series Final Best Dream 11 Team
We finally have the home country make a foray into the FIH Series Open. After the momentous success of the Hockey World Cup, the second leg of the FIH Series Open returns to India to decide on the two sides who’ll be contesting in the Japan 2020 Olympic Qualifiers. And for hosts India, the series couldn’t hold more importance given they have undergone a massive overhaul in recent times.
After falling at the quarter-finals stage in the Hockey World Cup before subsequently walking away with only a bronze medal at the Asian Games, the hockey governing council of the country decided to take some stern steps. Harendra Singh was removed as coach with Graham Reid taking over the mantle of the side and the FIH Series Open will be his first test in charge of the eight time world champions.
For Graham, the tournament is not only a humongous test of his credentials but also offers a chance to see the kind of game he’s imbedded in this set of players. Whilst the current crop of players are known for their exceptional play upfront, Harendra’s lack of acumen to shift to a more defensive gameplan and to long diagonal balls when needed ended up costing India major tournaments recently.
Elsewhere for opponents Russia, their World number 21 ranking and qualification to this event comes on the back of their FIH Series Open triumph in Portugal. They know things are not going to be as straightforward against India though with the Asian giants favourites to get their hands around the glistening trophy.
Probable Winner
The highest ranked side in the tournament at a placing of fifth in the world rankings, India are frontrunners to wrap up this tournament. Having tasted unsavoury defeated in recent times with the World Cup, Asian Games and Azlan Shah Cup, the hosts know they need to restablish their credentials as one of the top sides in the world in this tournament.
For Russia, it’s going to be one match just too much to get past. With India’s midfield leading the line, the defenders and forwards will revolve around it to put Russia to bed and we could be seeing an extremely one sided match at the end of the four quarters.
Goal-Keeper for IND vs RUS Dream11
It’s going to be Indian goal-keeper PR Sreejesh who comes into the side for us. He’s one of the most capped players for the country with 216 games played and has across his career proved to be one of India’s most reliable players.
Defenders for IND vs RUS Dream11
One of the biggest reasons India have been beleaguered at the major international tournaments has been their inability to maintain composure. They have fallen apart in the closing stages, conceding late goals under pressure and both captain Manpreet and coach Graham stressed upon this.
We expect to see a more stable Indian defence come today evening and leading the line from the front will be Harmanpreet Singh. He’s one of India’s main player, possessing a penchant for not just the defensive side of the game but at converting penalty corners as well. Accompanying him in the penalty corner setup will be Varun Kumar and he’s going to be our second Indian defensive pick.
We have Denis as our only pick from Russia. As Russia face an onslaught, he has the ability to stand his ground and deliver the goods.
Midfielders for IND vs RUS Dream11
Over the course of the last year, the midfield department has been India’s finest part of their side. In the safe tutelage of Manpreet, Vivek Sagar and Hardik Singh. Both Manpreet and Vivek come into our Dream 11 side given their astute presence in both sides of the field, always putting in a pristine work ethic to disrupt attacks and craft their own moves.
We are going to wrap up our selections from the Russian side here. Dmitry, Georgii and Denis come in here given their low price tags. While Georgii and Denis’ section in the main playing 11 is under question, the likelihood of them coming on as substitutes is high and with us wanting to save money in the strike force, we are going to opt for them.
Forwards for IND vs RUS Dream11
Apart from the defence side, another area which Manpreet stressed upon was their lack of clinical finishing. They’ve been let down way too long now with an inability to close out final moves and given the training and stress epitomised on this, we expect them to be much better in the culminating match of today.
The partnership of Mandeep Singh and Akashdeep Singh is too dangerous when they are in their grove and both will be selected by us.
Captain And Vice-Captain
Both Indian players with Mandeep Singh the captain and midfielder and captain Manpreet Singh the vice-captain.
Match Details
FIH Series Final
Match: India Vs Russia
Date And Time: 6th June, Thursday- 7:00pm IST
Venue: Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar
