Germany starts their World Cup title defence tie against Mexico in a Group F at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on Sunday, June 17.

When is Germany's FIFA World Cup 2018 opener and how to watch it live in India

The Group F tie will start at 6 pm local time, 8:30 pm IST and 4 pm BST.

Sony Ten 2, Sony Ten 3 and Sony ESPN will provide live television coverage of the match in India. The live stream will be available on Sony Liv.

Can Germany begin with a win?

Joachim Low's side heads into the draw as the clear favourites. Despite some of the biggest names, who had been with the winning team in Brazil four years ago, retiring, the Die Mannschaft have assembled a star-studded line-up.

Germany is power-packed enough that the likes of Borussia Dortmund midfielder and scorer of the winning goal in World Cup 2014, Mario Gotze, and Manchester City winger Leroy Sane did not make the final 23.

Low experimented with a young side at last year's Confederations Cup and still went on to win the title. The holders have arrived in Russia with a good mix of youth and experience.

Germany was rampant in the World Cup qualifiers as they won 10 on 10, scoring 43 and conceding only four goals. However, the momentum has taken a beating due to some ordinary results (draws against England, France, and Spain and defeats to Brazil and Austria) in the lead-up to the World Cup finals.

Ozil Germany
Mesut Ozil and Germany will expect to reach the round of 16 without too many problemsAlexander Hassenstein/Bongarts/Getty Images

The defending champions would definitely want to set down a marker in Moscow against the El Tri. Off-field issues surrounding Ilkay Gundogan and Mesut Ozil will also simmer down if the Germans make a strong start.

Does Mexico have the firepower to prevent a German win?

On the other hand, the Mexican team, which has made the Round of 16 six times on the bounce, will be hoping for a positive result as they have been drawn in a tricky group, consisting Sweden and South Korea.

Juan Carlos Osorio's men had a good qualifying run as they topped the Concacaf group with only one defeat in 10 matches.

However, concerns remain over the form their key forwards in James Rodriguez and Raul Jimenez, both of whom are heading into the World Cup on the back of ordinary domestic seasons at West Ham United and Benfica, respectively.

Germany vs Mexico - Group F opener team news

Fifa World Cup 2018 - Global TV listings and live stream

  1. UK: TV - BBC; Live stream: BBC IPlayer
  2. Australia: TV: SBS; Live stream: SBS, Optus Sport
  3. USA: Fox and Telemundo.
  4. Russia: VGTRK.
  5. Middle East: Bein Sports.