From the two matches taking place in Group C today at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium it was both the hosts and Belgium who picked up their first wins, beating South Africa and Canada respectively.

Cheered on by 15,000 fans, India dominated the early part of their match, ending the first quarter 2-0 up thanks to goals from Mandeep Singh and Akashdeep Singh.

Another two goals in the third quarter from Simranjeet Singh and Lait Upadhyay made it 4-0 before Simranjeet’s second from a penalty corner completed the win.

After the game their coach Harendra Singh said he was pleased not to concede.

"My main defence is all 11 players, it is not [just] the defenders, [but also] the midfielders and the strikers," he said.

"They knew what to do, and at the right time in the right positions they snatched the ball away, even in our circle."

Belgium, meanwhile, ranked third in the world, also took an early lead against Canada, in the third minute thanks to Felix Danayer.

Captain Thomas Briels thought he had made it 2-0 shortly after only for the video umpire to rule it out.

Briels did get his goal in the second-quarter, though, with a lovely half volley.

Unlike in India's match, however, it was not all plain sailing for the Belgians.

Canada grew into the game and halved the lead when Mark Pearson scored during a sustained period of pressure in the fourth-quarter.

In the end, though, their surge came too late, and Belgium took the win.

The competition is due to continue tomorrow with Pool A action featuring the 2016 Olympic champions Argentina, Spain, New Zealand and France.