Dutch hockey players will compete with New Zealand, Malaysia and Chile in the group stage of the World Cup in January. This is evidenced by the draw for the final world championships in India on Thursday.
New Zealand on paper is the Netherlands’ strongest opponent. “Kiwi” has been participating in the World Cup continuously since 1998 and is ranked ninth in the world rankings. Orange is number three on that list after Australia and Belgium.
The Netherlands, who meet the newcomer at the World Cup level with Chile, have been appointed as the group chief of the draw. India, Australia and Belgium also have a similar situation, such that those four countries cannot meet.
Defending champions Belgium and close together with Germany, South Korea and Japan, are seeded in Group B. The other two groups consist of Australia, South Africa, France, Argentina (Group A), India, Wales, Spain and England (Group D).
The last Dutch world title dates back to 1998
The group winners of the World Cup – just like the women – advance directly to the World Cup quarter-finals. Numbers two and three also have a chance of progressing and should play a middle role to get a place in the last eight.
In India, national coach Jeroen Delmy’s team is striving for the first world title for the Netherlands since 1998. In the past two editions, the Netherlands lost in the final battle and had to win the silver medal.
The matches will be held during the Hockey World Cup in Bhubaneswar and Rourkila. The two cities are separated by about 300 km. The match schedule (locations and times) will be released later this year.
