Confident of reclaiming Hockey World Cup and taking home fourth title: Australia captain

Hockey fans cannot be more excited as the 2023 World Cup is all set to begin in less than a week's time in Odisha. A total of 16 teams will participate in the tournament and they will be divided into four groups. While the Indian men's hockey team would hope to put up a strong showing at home, they would need to get past a strong Australian side, who is confident of winning a fourth title.

Ockenden confident of reclaiming Hockey World Cup title

Speaking of how he expects his side to perform, Australian captain Eddie Ockenden said (as quoted by ANI), "Our players are really excited to be here and we have big ambitions in the tournament. We want to do well and have confidence that we will be able to win the FIH Odisha Hockey Men's World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela title. Our team has a lot of experience and it will be really crucial for us."

The Australian team would be looking to win their fourth Hockey World Cup title in Odisha, having won the competition in 1986 (England), 2010 (New Delhi), and 2014 (The Hague, Netherlands). As for the 2018 edition of the tournament, the Kookaburras finished in third place, losing to the Netherlands in the semi-finals.

Other than Australian captain Eddie Ockenden, head coach Colin Batch also gave his views on the expectations the side will have at the Hockey World Cup 2023. As quoted by ANI, Batch said, "We have a really good team and our players are prolific goal scorers which is really important as it helps you to win matches. At the same time, our defence is also really good and we often manage to restrict the opposition's scoring. So, our fundamentals are strong and that makes us a really good side.:

Speaking of the challenge the Indian men's hockey team can pose at home, Batch added, "Our players are also excited to face India as they are a totally different side at home. They play good hockey at home and get extra motivation from the crowd. It will be tough to beat India if we play against them in the FIH Odisha Hockey Men's World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela."