Bhubaneswar, Jan. 14 -- New Zealand made a winning start to their FIH Odisha Men's Hockey World Cup 2023 campaign, as Sam Hiha's brace and another strike from Sam Lane helped them drub debutants Chile 3-1 in a Pool C match at the Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium in Rourkela on Saturday.

The Kiwis managed to establish a stronghold over Chile right from the beginning. They exerted a lot of pressure on debutants. Chile also showed some resistance against the brutal attack by their opponents.

With ten minutes into the first quarter, Sam Lane swept the ball past goalkeeper Adrian Henriquez, invading the Chilean circle to establish an early lead.

Sam Hiha swung into action, firing the ball past the goalkeeper to double the lead just ...