Mumbai: Opening matches of World Cups across any team sport can be tricky. After a period of some leeway for combination and tactical experiments to “build on to” the tournament that matters, as head coach Craig Fulton put it ahead of India’s curtain-raiser, there is little room left for slip-ups.
First acts may not define the campaign, but it can set the tone. For India, that first act of the 2026 Men’s Hockey World Cup against Wales was fairly positive.
Against an opposition that sought crowdfunding to turn up at hockey’s biggest showpiece, India dished out a relatively solid 3-1 victory in Pool D with all three goals coming from penalty corners (PC) at the Wagener Hockey Stadium in Amstelveen, Netherlands on the inaugural day.
Deep Dive
What were the key moments in India's opening match against Wales in the Hockey World Cup?
Why is the performance of captain Harmanpreet Singh crucial for India's chances in the Hockey World Cup?
How did the Wales team prepare for their participation in the Hockey World Cup?
Sterner tests than 15th-ranked Wales will await the Tokyo and Paris Games bronze medallist over the fortnight, but Saturday’s display should settle any nerves that the Indian players, clad in their new saffron-coloured playing outfit, may have had.
Kit talk threatened to steer much of the pre-tournament build-up off the field, and this victory could also help bring attention back to action on the turf.
Captain Harmanpreet Singh got into his elements on it, scoring twice with his dragflicks in the 11th and 43rd minute. Harmanpreet’s form often mirrors India’s fortunes in high-stakes tournaments. At the 2023 World Cup at home, India crashed out before the quarter-finals with just four goals from their off-colour leader.
{{/usCountry}}Captain Harmanpreet Singh got into his elements on it, scoring twice with his dragflicks in the 11th and 43rd minute. Harmanpreet’s form often mirrors India’s fortunes in high-stakes tournaments. At the 2023 World Cup at home, India crashed out before the quarter-finals with just four goals from their off-colour leader.
{{/usCountry}}That the 30-year-old got half that number one contest into the 2026 edition is a good sign. So is someone other than Harmanpreet stepping up to convert a PC, as 25-year-old Sanjay did in the 8th minute when the captain wasn’t on the field.
“I am very happy that one of the youngsters scored a goal, especially on dragflick,” Harmanpreet told FIH after the game. “As a team, we played well, the way we managed the ball and the opportunities we created in the circle... overall, it was pretty much a good game.”
India converted three of the five PCs they earned (one went wide from Harmanpreet and the other was mis-trapped). For this team built on solid defence and counterattacks, set-pieces become important, but Fulton would perhaps have liked a field goal in his best-case scenario for the opener. And a clean sheet, which Sam Welsh ensured did not happen with a 56th-minute goal after a melee around Indian custodian Mohith HS and the added confusion of the umpire dropping his whistle.
“In our next game, we need to show more, we need to create more chances and score some field goals as well,” said Harmanpreet.
That next game on Monday is against world No.3 England, who are bound to be a tougher task than Wales.
The Welshmen, though, had a different task of their own before even arriving at the World Cup. Coming through the Qualifiers in March, the Wales team requested £40,000 through a crowdfunding website. With the team only partly funded, they sought additional money for support before and during the tournament, including travel, accommodation, training camps, nutrition and equipment. By the time they took the field to play India, they had raised a little over £38,000.
Speaking before the game, Wales coach Danny Newcombe said money matters were in the past and it was time for their hockey to take over. For the first few minutes, it did with much optimism as Wales kept early possession.
As India earned their first PC halfway into the quarter and Sanjay’s flick squeezed through the legs of Welsh goalkeeper Toby Reynolds-Cotterill, it opened the set-piece floodgates. Harmanpreet was all too happy to break in. Both his flicks went past the left of Reynolds-Cotterill, the second flatter and faster.
India had some moments around it, like Jarmanpreet Singh’s long-range shot and brilliant individual defensive skills under intense pressure in the first quarter. Wales got more compact in the second half, and also cashed in on India’s otherwise strong defence faltering just a touch in the closing stages.
All in all, though, the Indian men will take this start to a long World Cup.