Preview 7 // 11 Dec 2018, 03:12 IST SHARE As the Odisha Hockey World Cup heads into the pulsating but unforgiving knockout phase, a few teams have had to head home a lot earlier than they would have anticipated, while the French have confounded the pundits and made a mockery of the rankings, just as the Irish women did at London earlier this year.When a third-ranked Belgian side takes on thirteenth-ranked Pakistan in the crossovers, does it need a soothsayer to make a prediction as to which of them is more likely to progress to the quarterfinals?Indeed, that may well be the case, simply because of the phenomenal past achievements of one of the greatest sides ever, whose steep decline and painfully slow resurrection has been the predominant topic of discussion in the world of hockey.Shane McLeod’s Belgian side may well start favorites in the crossover stage but have yet to win a World Cup gold, and have been part of the event just six times since first appearing at the Amstelveen edition in 1973.In stark contrast, Pakistan has been part of every single edition of the World Cup ever since it’s inception in 1971, missing out only in 2014…