The Hockey Indian League, which kick-started on 22 January has seen a lot of ups and downs in the tournament, which featured some top Indian hockey as well as international stars.
Now, the competition has moved into the business end of the competition with two semi-finals lined up on Saturday.
The first semi-final is going to take place between Ranchi Rays and Uttar Pradesh Wizards in Delhi, while the second semi would be fought between Jaypee Punjab Warriors and Delhi Wave Riders in the same venue.
Punjab Warriors and Ranchi Rays have been the two best teams in the competition with six wins each and both have earned 35 points in the competition so far.
Ranchi Rays would head into their semi-final clash with full confidence against Uttar Pradesh Wizards after defeating the Warriors 3-2 in the final game of the group stages. It was captain Ashley Jackson who scored a brilliant hat-trick to win the game.
A similar performance would be required by their skipper along with their other star players to reach the finals of the competition, which is going to be played on 22 February.
Earlier in the competition, when Ranchi met Uttar Pradesh, it was an interesting game, where the former turned triumphant on both the occasions, but the Wizards were not outplayed. The score read 2-0 and 1-0 in favour of Uttar Pradesh.
How would the score read at the end of 70 minutes in the first semi-final?
For the second semi-final, when Punjab Warriors takes on Delhi Wave Riders, Punjab would be a confident lot as they have defeated Delhi on both the fixtures of the competition. In the first match, Delhi lost 1-3 in Delhi.
But it was the second clash, which embarrassed Delhi as they were thrashed 7-0 at Mohali.
Delhi comprises of some good players in the team, who need to stand up in their semi-finals clash, especially, Sardar Singh, who can win games on his own as well.
Coach Cedric d'Souza needs to find a formula to help the team defeat Warriors, who are favourites to win the title.
Where to Watch Live
The first semi-final between Ranchi Rays and Uttar Pradesh Wizards will start at 4:30pm IST and the second semi-final between Jaypee Punjab Warriors and Delhi Wave Riders will start at 7pm IST. Both semi-finals will be shown live on Star Sports 3 and Star Sports HD3 with live streaming option on Star Sports Official website.
