Olympic Champions Belgium beat India 3-2 in a closely-fought battle
With this win, Belgium have pushed India to the third place in the pool standings while Netherlands continues to lead the table in this season's prestigious FIH Hockey Pro League.
With this win, Belgium have pushed India to the third place in the pool standings while Netherlands continues to lead the table in this season's prestigious FIH Hockey Pro League.
It was a penalty stroke save by Sreejesh off an attempt by Nicolas de Kerpel during the shootout that ensured India were victorious while Harmanpreet Singh, Abhishek, Lalit Upadhyay, Shamsher Singh and Akashdeep Singh converted for India.
Currently placed second on the pool table with 27 points in 12 matches, the Indian team is coming off a successful home leg. After starting their home leg with a 5-4 win and a 3-5 loss against Spain, the Indian team went on to secure match points against every team they played against.
Coach Sardar Singh's team exacted some revenge as it emerged 2-1 winner in a Super 4s Pool encounter in the Asia Cup 2022, on Saturday.
India needed to win by a margin of 15 goals in the final group match to qualify for the Super 4s.
In the previous edition, held in Dhaka in 2017, India won the trophy after defeating Malaysia in the final.
The current table toppers India will play Belgium on June 11, 12 in Antwerp, followed by matches against the Netherlands on June 18, 19 in Rotterdam. The team will be captained by Amit Rohidas and vice-captained by Harmanpreet Singh.
India, Japan, Pakistan, and the host nation Pool A includes Indonesia, while Pool B includes Malaysia, Korea, Oman, and Bangladesh. On May 23, India will face Pakistan in a titanic battle in Pool A.
Hockey India named a 20-man squad for the World Cup qualifier tournament on Monday. Pool A includes India, Japan, Pakistan, and host Indonesia, while Pool B includes Malaysia, Korea, Oman, and Bangladesh.
Further expressing his disappointment over the postponement of the Asian Games, Tirkey said India had an excellent chance to win the competition and directly qualify for the Paris Olympics 2024.