On a high after an unbeaten pool campaign, a determined Indian men’s hockey team will need to be at their fighting best against title-holders and five-time champions Korea when the two sides face each other in their first Super 4 stage match of the Asia Cup on Wednesday.

The Indians finished Pool A fixtures with an all-win record, beating China 4-3 and Japan 3-2 before routing minnows Kazakhstan 15-0 on Monday. But the results do not reflect the unimpressive way in which India had started the campaign, scraping past China and Japan. But they can derive strength from the big win against Kazakhstan.

What works in India’s favour is that Korea have not looked at their best so far, having finished second in Pool B behind Malaysia. The Koreans were the favourites to top, but their 4-1 loss to Malaysia has come as a reality check. They have struggled in the sweltering heat and high humidity during afternoon matches, but with the Super 4 games starting in the evening, one can expect them to lift their game.

In Monday’s match, India were on top of their game, be it goalkeeping, defence, mid-field or attacks. The performance of the forward-line with Abhishek stealing the limelight with four goals stood out. Abhishek’s positioning and first-time strikes when he got the ball inside the circle was simply brilliant.

Sukhjeet Singh, who also scored a hat-trick, was another player who excelled with his fast dribbling from the flanks and the sense of calm inside the “D”. The experienced Mandeep Singh has been brilliant as usual with his stick-work.

The only cause for concern in India’s forward-line remains Dilpreet Singh, who scored on Monday but also missed a sitter. He has been struggling in the tournament so far and needs to raise the level of his game.

Happy with the strikers’ performance, India’s chief coach Craig Fulton said, “Going into the Super 4s you want your strikers connecting and scoring goals.” India’s midfield has been led brilliantly by veteran Manpreet Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Sumit and the young Rajinder Singh. The back-line, comprising Amit Rohidas, Jugraj Singh and Sanjay have produced an improved performance under the leadership of Harmanpreet Singh.

But Fulton knows it would not be right to judge the performance of the players against a side like Kazakhstan. He knows that the real tournament starts now with previous results holding no significance. He, however, believes that the confidence of the team will keep them going.

Penalty corner conversion is one area where the team needs a lot of improvement. India has a strong quartet of drag-flickers led by Harmanpreet, and against Kazakhstan all four, Harmanpreet, Jugraj, Sanjay and Rohidas, found the net from set pieces. Jugraj not only scored a hat-trick, but was also solid in defence.

In the Super 4 stage, India, Korea, China and Malaysia will play each other and the top two will qualify for Sunday’s final. The Asia Cup is a direct qualifier for next year’s World Cup to be jointly hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands. In the other Super 4 match, Malaysia will take on China earlier in the day.