It's do or die for India

A win against the New Zealanders would give India a chance to finish a respectable third in the tournament.

A battered and bruised India would take on New Zealand in their last league match in Lahore on Friday but a loss mean they would be left with no other option but to play for the last two places in the Champions Trophy hockey tournament.

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A win against their lowly ranked opponents would give India a chance to match their best-ever performance in the Champions Trophy -- a third place finish in the 1982 at Amstelveen, Holland, but going by their form, it looks a Herculean task.

India have just one win to their credit -- against an experimental German side -- from four matches so far and a victory against New Zealand would set them against either Pakistan or Spain who would be battling out for a berth in the final on Friday.

The Netherlands, seeking a hat-trick of titles, have already qualified for the summit clash with four wins from as many matches and would be playing Germany in their last league engagement.