Indian junior men's hockey team eased their way into the quarterfinals of the prestigious FIH Hockey Men's Junior World Cup Tamil Nadu 2025 after an unbeaten run in the round-robin league stage. On Tuesday, the team convincingly beat Switzerland 5-0 at the Madurai International Hockey Stadium. Led by Rohit and coached by PR Sreejesh, India will take on Belgium on December 5, as per Hockey India's press release. The visitors were no match for the India Colts' experience and dominant performance.
India's goal rush began as early as the 2nd minute, with birthday boy Manmeet Singh giving the home side an early cushion. He doubled the lead to 2-0 in the 11th minute with yet another scintillating field goal, while Sharda Nand Tiwari made it 3-0 in the 13th minute with a well-executed PC.
It was exactly the kind of start India was looking for, and they enthralled the Madurai audience, who had turned up despite the cyclonic weather. Arshdeep Singh, who scored a hat-trick in the previous match against Oman, netted India's fourth goal in the 28th minute. Meanwhile, goalie Prince Deep Singh was on top of his game, making fantastic saves that kept Switzerland from scoring.
India's performance was clinical and ensured they kept up the momentum into the fourth quarter. Sharda Nand, who was awarded Player of the Match, scored his second goal-and India's fifth-in the 54th minute through a PC. This sealed the game for India, leaving Switzerland with no chance to threaten.
It was yet another big win for India after they beat Chile 7-0 and Oman 17-0 in their previous matches to reach the knockout stage.
India will play the quarterfinals in Chennai on December 5.