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The Indian women's hockey team will take on Spain in their opening encounter of the Five-Nations Hockey tournament that begins in Valencia on December 15.
Ireland, Germany, and Belgium are the other teams in the competition. The Belgians, who are currently in fourth place as per the FIH rankings, are the highest-ranked team in the tournament followed by Germany who occupy fifth place while the Indians are ranked sixth.
The Indian women's team have played extensively against Spain both on tour and in the FIH Hockey Nations Cup which followed the 2022 Women's World Cup.
In the crucial crossover game of the FIH Women's World Cup in Terrassa, Spain defeated India 1-0 to progress to the quarterfinals of the competition.
The Indians failed to beat Spain during a tour to Valencia last December, losing 0-1 in the opener, before holding the home team to a 1-1 draw.
Following a 1-3 defeat in the third tour match, the Indians tilted the scales against the hosts at the 2022 FIH Hockey Nations Cup which was held immediately after the tour games.
A sixth-minute PC strike from Gurjit Kaur was enough to hand the Indians a much needed 1-0 win against Spain in the finals of the Nations Cup at the Estadio Betero.
The Indian girls toured Spain earlier this year as part of the 100th Anniversary Spanish Hockey Federation International tournament.
The Women in Blue held the home team to a 2-2 draw in Terrassa in the first match before going on to thrash Spain 3-0 in the second game.
Five-Nations Hockey 2023 to help Indian women's team prepare for Olympic qualifiers
The Five-Nations Hockey tournament in Valencia will be crucial for Janneke Schopman's team to prepare themselves as they gear up to play the Olympic qualifiers in order to qualify for the 2024 Paris Games.
In Hangzhou, the Savita Punia-led side went down fighting 0-4 to a formidable Chinese team in the semifinals of the Asian Games, thus losing out on an opportunity to earn a direct berth to the Olympics.
Despite not being able to win gold at the Asian Games, which would have guaranteed them a spot in the Paris Olympics, the Indian girls went on to reign supreme in the Asian Champions Trophy that followed.
The Women in Blue will need to finish among the top three in the eight-nation qualifiers which will be held in Ranchi in January 2024 to be able to earn a ticket for the Olympic Games.
Gurjit Kaur, who missed out on the Asian Games, returns to the side while Deep Grace is a notable absentee. Ace striker Vandana Katariya has been appointed Savita Punia's deputy for the tournament in Valencia.
Young Sharmila Devi and Sangita Kumari will add firepower to the Indian attack.
Prediction:
India 3 - 1 Spain
Five-Nations Hockey - Where to Watch?
No information is currently available with regard to the telecast or live-streaming of the Five-Nations Hockey tournament in India. The match begins at 3:30 pm IST.
