Hockey heartbreak for India as they lose in shoot-out
MALAYSIA’S VETERAN GOALKEEPER KUMAR SHOWS EXCEPTIONAL SKILLS
Defending champions India’s perennial problem of conceding penalty corners at the death came to fore and they suffered a shock defeated at the hands of Malaysia 7-6 in a shoot-out after the scores were tied 2-2.
Razie Muhammad Rahim gave Malaysia the lifeline by drawing level through a penalty corner with just a minute and 41 seconds remaining.
And when you force a contest into the tiebreak, then even the best of teams can succumb to the pressure. In regulation time, India opened their account through Harmanpreet Singh at the beginning of the third quarter. The lead didn’t last long as five minutes later, Faizal Saari drew level with a brilliant strike off a counter. India immediately bounced back from that set back with Varun Kumar again putting them in the driving seat, scoring off a penalty corner before Rahim levelled.
Rahim’s hit split the defence and going went through the legs of a rooted India skipper and goalkeeper PR Srejeesh.
In the shoot-out, Malaysia’s Fitri Mohd Saari, Firhan Muhammad Ashari scored two goals each, while Azuan Muhamad Meor, Faizal Saari and Ahmad Tengku Tajuddin scored one apiece. For India, Akashdeep Singh converted a brace, whereas Harmanpreet Singh, Manpreet Singh and Dilpreet Singh shared three goals between them. SV Sunil’s missed the decisive shot and the Malaysian camp erupted with joy.
To many errors
Malaysia’s veteran goalkeeper S Kumar was simply exceptional.
“I think we should give credit to the Malaysian team to the way they fought in the match. We had way too many unforced errors and we paid the price from the start. We tried to show our Indian skill and that is where we lot the momentum,” said a dejected-looking India coach Harinder Singh.
“The future road is bumpy because it won’t be easy to get the boarding card for the Olympics. We were determined to get it here but paid the price for the silly mistakes. It is not an individual setback for me as a coach but I would say it is a setback for Indian hockey.”
Pakistan, who took to the turf soon after India’s encounter, suffered a similar fate. A solitary goal by Japan’s Shota Yamada via a penalty corner in the 17th minute ended Pakistan’s hopes of making it to the final. They will be now clashing against archrivals India for bronze.
Meanwhile, Indian women’s team having beaten threetimes champion China 1-0 through a goal from Gurjeet Kaur in the semis and will take on three-time Asian Games runners-up Japan in the final.
“We need to remember the remaining two quarters of the match, which we played against China, and that style of playing would be helpful to us in executing our plans against Japan,” said India’s Dutch coach Sjoerd Marijne adding that his team will have their task cut out against Japan.