Co-host Netherlands wear blue on blue turf, India play in saffron in Hockey WC

For decades, blue has been the colour most closely linked with Indian sport. Across disciplines, Indian teams have worn blue while representing the country on the international stage. But ahead of the FIH Hockey World Cup in the Netherlands and Belgium, Hockey India unveiled a new saffron jersey for both the men's and women's teams last month.The reason, according to Hockey India, was visibility. The federation said the "blue playing uniform tended to blend/merge with the blue synthetic playing surface, which is now the standard colour of international hockey pitches. This visual similarity affected on-field clarity and visibility for the players."However, in India women's first match of the second round of the FIH World Cup againt the co-hosts Netherlands on Friday in Amstelveen, India walked out in saffron, while the Netherlands played in blue. On the same blue turf where India had argued blue jerseys reduced visibility.