Champions Trophy Hockey, Highlights: India Bring Down Mighty Netherlands 3-2
India stun second-ranked Netherlands with a defiant game of hockey to finish Pool B in the third spot.
Hurting from two successive losses, India played out of their skins to leave Netherlands stunned. With an energetic crowd screaming its support, the side registered a 3-2 win to finish 3rd in Pool B and setup a clash against Belgium in the quarterfinals.
Following are the highlights from the match.
Final quarterfinal lineup:
Belgium vs India; England vs Germany, Pakistan vs Netherlands; Australia vs Argentina. All matches on December 11 (Thursday).
Match over! India win and what a night for hockey in the country. Defeating giants Netherlands is never easy but this team showed fantastic hockey to collect points in style.
59' Goalkeeper Harjot makes a stunning save!
59' Indians living dangerously as Dutch forwards march ahead. Hearts in every mouth as India manage to somehow deny the men in orange.
57' Another penalty corner given to the Dutch and they score! It's 3-2, still in favour of India.
57' Nothing from that penalty corner It is still 3-1 in favour of India.
57' Penalty corner for the Dutch late into the game. India have a cushion but the Dutch can make most of the momentum if they score here.
53' Nothing working for the Dutch right now as one of their player is shown the green card. Meanwhile, Indians continue to bombard the defense.
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50' Goal! India get one more in. Fantastic scenes at Kalinga stadium as India cement lead against giants Netherlands.
50' Penalty corner to India!
47' Goal! Manpreet finds a field goal early into the final quarter to put his team in the lead.
End of third quarter with India and Netherlands level at 1-1.
44' A penalty corner given to the Dutch and this time, the Indians ask for a video referral. TV referee says no PC!
41' See-saw battle between the two teams now but the Indian defenders have shown more determination than they did against Argentina in the previous match. The team - in that match - had conceded goals after taking the lead twice.
36' The Indians, despite being scored against, have kept the pressure on the Dutch defense.
34' GOAL! Dutch make no mistake second time around. The ball is hit with force and the equaliser is achieved.
34' Dutch now attack with all their might. Two runs into the Indian D gets them a PC off the second. Gurjinder rushes out to deny them but the PC will have to be taken once again.
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32' GOAL! India take the lead. Gurjinder passes the ball forward and Sunil gets a deflection to find the back of the goal. Dutch demand a referral but TV referee says decision will remain. Local fans erupt in absolute joy.
31' Harjot replaces Sreejesh at the Indian goal. Waiting for reports on the reason for the change.
29' Netherlands strike but the ball hits the crossbar. At halftime, both teams are in a 0-0 deadlock.
29' India concede penalty corner in dying seconds of second quarter.
29' Dutch go on counter attack with an accurate pass to Hoffman. He had only one man to beat but it was Sreejesh! Goalkeeper does what he does so well as home fans cheer the save.
26' A long pass to Akashdeep appears dangerous but his pass forward is wayward. India make a mess of a golden chance to slam a field goal. The Dutch defense there was caught napping.
25' The second penalty corner is messed up by the Indians. Manpreet fails to trap the ball and a desperate shot to make up for it comes to nothing.
24' India get first penalty corner. Shot on target but kept out. Referee says another penalty corner.
22' Three Dutch shirts are doing sorties inside India's danger zone, the hosts barely manage to survive. Better man-marking could have avoided the precarious moments of anxiety.
21' Netherlands increase their attacks on Indian D. They tuck the ball under an Indian defender but an alert Sreejesh foots it away.
19' Netherlands swarm Indian D but Gurjinder clears it away. The ball is retrieved and the Dutch get their first clear shot at goal. Hoffman was still running when he took the shot and PR Sreejesh is up to the challenge, clears the danger away.
18' The first penalty corner of the match is welcomed by a loud cheer from fans. It is for India. Dutch ask for video referral and the initial decision is reversed. Short corner for the hosts is hardly dangerous.
16' India maintain hold on the ball in the early stages of the second quarter. The team makes sweeping passes and use the entire width of the field.
End of first quarter and it ends with neither team finding a reason to celebrate.
13' The men in orange have crowded their D and are marking the Indian forwards with precision. A break comes their way and in what could have been a one-on-one attack on Indian goal was avoided in the last minute.
11' Dutch custodian under pressure as Indians make their best move yet. Raghunath snatched the ball and made a good run. He passed to Akashdeep who slaps the ball but it flies above - and slightly sidewards - the goalpost.
10' Indian forwards have made good moves towards the Dutch goal but have had no success. The team has had more chances in the opposite D than the Dutch have had.
6' An altercation between players as Rupinder tries to pass the ball through a fallen Dutch player. Ball hits him on the legs. Indian rushes to say sorry but gets a warning nontheless.
3' After a counter from Netherlands, India go right back on the attack. The hosts are keeping up the intensity in the first few minutes of the match.
1' Dutch begin but India get the ball within seconds and rush towards the opposing end. Akashdeep sends the ball into the D but nothing comes of it.
* India and Netherlands come out to the field and are greeted by another packed stadium today.
* There was some speculation that foreign teams would struggle in hot conditions in India. This, however, has not happened yet. It is currently 24C in Bhubaneswar.
* In previous matches of the day, Argentina stunned Germany 3-0 while England topped Pool A after a draw with Belgium. Australia thrashed Pakistan 3-0 in the other Pool A match.
India went down 1-0 to Germany in their first match despite showing excellent aggression. A goal in the dying seconds spelt doom for Sardar Singh's men. Any hopes of a comeback against Argentina were dashed by defensive errors as the Latin Americans came back twice in their match to hurt the hosts 4-2.
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The Indian team has shown its determination to play aggressive hockey. It has thrilled local fans - numbering close to 7000 on match days - but the final outcome has not been favourable. The team has attacked in waves, countered with focus and made full use of the flanks to challenge their oppositions. Goalkeeper PR Sreejesh too has been a wall but has lacked key support - a flaw which has resulted in the team suffering defeats despite the aggression. Against the fiery Dutch and with their backs to the wall, India will have to play out of their skins in the final Pool B encounter. (India's Raghunath hopes to stun Netherlands)
The reason Netherlands are a feared side is not just because of their reputation. They have shown just why they are rated amongst the best teams in the world.
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Netherlands blanked Argentina 3-0 in their opening match of Champions Trophy. They then returned to outclass their European rivals - Germany - 4-1. Their fearless brand of hockey is matched by excellent talent and skill - making them one of the favourites to win the tournament.