Barcelona, July 28 (ANI): In the ongoing 100th-anniversary Spanish Hockey Federation-International Tournament, the Indian men’s hockey team put up a powerful performance and stopped England from taking the lead, settling for a 1-1 draw.
Sam Ward scored an early goal for England in the fifth minute, but India equalized in the 29th minute with a brilliant goal from Harmanpreet Singh.
Despite the initial setback, India made a stunning comeback in the following minutes and successfully defended two penalty corners.
During the match, India’s forward line continued their attacking play, earning a penalty corner in the 12th minute, but Captain Harmanpreet Singh’s dangerous play led to the umpire disallowing their goal.
In the second quarter’s early minutes, India launched another powerful attack as Vice-Captain Hardik Singh’s stickwork raised the hopes of Indian fans with a goal, but their efforts were in vain against England’s defense. India had to work hard to breach England’s defensive line, and finally, in the 29th minute, Harmanpreet successfully converted a penalty corner into a goal.
In the third quarter, young goalkeeper Pawan, who replaced Sreejesh, made a beautiful save from England’s penalty corner in the 35th minute. India had some opportunities in the following minutes, but they couldn’t capitalize on them.
With the score tied at 1-1, the final quarter remained tense for India. Although they had a golden chance to score in the last minutes of the match, they couldn’t find the net.
The draw in the match ended India’s hopes of reaching the final in Barcelona. Before returning home, the team will play their next league match against the Netherlands, who lost to Spain.