Bhubaneswar: The Odisha capital will have no idea what it's like to witness an epic India vs Pakistan battle across sports because this is the first time that a big-ticket event of the magnitude of FIH Men's Champions Trophy has been hosted here.
The crowd response for the event has been unmatched for hockey in India in recent times, and Hockey India should be applauded for the decision to give the hosting rights to Hockey Odisha.
India and Pakistan are among the four underperformers of the pool stage, all of whom beat the favourites to reach the semis - with the Netherlands, England, Argentina and Belgium all left to fight for the 5th to 8th position.
But when it comes to the Champoins Trophy, Pakistan have enjoyed a better run and managed to get the better of their archrivals on most occasions.
In the 36-year history of the tournament, India have managed just a bronze (1982), while Pakistan lifted the trophy thrice (1978, 1980, 1994) and finished third on the podium seven times.
A win over Pakistan is rare for India talking in terms of the Champions Trophy. And though they beat the neighbours to win their only medal in 1982, Pakistan came out on top in four other meetings for bronze since then, including in the last edition at Melbourne.
1982 (Amstelveen, Netherlands): India beat Pakistan 5-4
2002 (Cologne, Germany): Pakistan beat India 4-3
2003 (Amstelveen, Netherlands): Pakistan beat India 4-3
2004 (Lahore, Pakistan): Pakistan beat India 3-2
2012 (Melbourne, Australia): Pakistan beat India 3-2
Talking about form of the two teams in this Champions Trophy, both have blown hot and cold, with India enjoying slightly better results compared to their neighbours.
Pakistan finished the pool stage without a win, losing all their three matches. But then they surprised title-favourties Netherlands with a 4-2 victory in the quarters.
India, after losing their first two matches to Germany and Argentina, beat the Dutch team in the last game in Pool A and then went on to tame Belgium 4-2 in the quarter-final.
So with two wins compared to Pakistan's one, India can be considered in slightly better form. But considering the dangerously unpredictable nature of Pakistan team and the pressure of the semi-finals, expect the unexpected on Saturday.
That's India vs Pakistan.
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