Bhubneswar: In a crucial match, India beat debutants Wales 4-2 to storm into crossovers of the Men's Hockey World Cup here on Thursday.
India had a mountain to climb if they wanted to earn the top spot in Pool D and qualify for the quarterfinals without having to go through the crossovers, they needed to win the game by 8 goals to overtake England in the standings.
But Wales were no pushovers and competed well in the first half, keeping India at bay till the 22nd minute.
Shamsher finally found the back of the net for India with a thundering strike after Harmanpreet’s attempted drag flick was run down by the Welsh first rusher.
That would be the only goal India would score in the first half as hopes of topping the group faded for the hosts.
The second half started with an Indian goal by Akashdeep early in the 3rd quarter, but as India searched for more goals, Wales got a chance to launch counters of their own and as the 3rd quarter came to a close, Wales scored twice to stun the crowd and go into the final 15 minutes on level terms.
Akashdeep added a second stunning goal at the start of 4th quarter to give India the lead back and Harmanpreet finally opened his account in the tournament in the final minute of the game as India won a penalty corner after Wales had taken their keeper off for an outfield player.
The result confirmed India’s second spot in Pool D and they will now take on New Zealand, who finished third in Pool C, in the crossovers for a spot in the quarterfinals.
Akashdeep Singh was awarded player of the match for his two stunning goals and said “We weren’t very good in the first half in terms of executing our plans, but the second half was better. Thank you to all the fans who turned up and please keep supporting us just like this!”
In other final group matches, Netherlands and England topped their groups, booking their quarterfinals spots, while Malaysia, New Zealand, and Spain moved into the crossovers.
Malaysia and New Zealand played the first game, with Malaysia needing a win to overtake New Zealand for the second spot in the group, while New Zealand just needed a draw to stay ahead of Malaysia on goal difference.
What unfolded was an enthralling contest with Malaysia grabbing the first two goals of the game, but the Kiwis responded with two quickfire goals in the 4th quarter to level the scores.
Malaysia had the last laugh however, scoring with 2 minutes left on the clock to seal the win and grab the second spot in Pool C, with New Zealand finishing 3rd.
Netherlands were up next against Chile who had been resilient in their first two games of the tournament. They came into the game in a menacing mood and scored 14 past the Chilean defence to set a new record for the biggest margin of victory in an FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup.
Action then moved over to Pool D as Spain and England went up in game 1 with all 4 spots in the group undecided.
Spain started the game brightly, but failed to find their scoring touch, while England made the best of their opportunities, scoring twice before the half.
The second half followed a similar pattern, as Spain’s scoring touch completely deserted them, while the English defence withstood all the pressure and launched counter-attacks that helped add 2 more goals in the second half for an emphatic 4-0 win.
Result: Match 1
Malaysia 3-2 New Zealand
Player of the Match: Marhan Jalil (MAS)
Umpires: Martin Madden (SCO), Bruce Bale (ENG), Coen van Bunge (NED-video)
Result: Match 2
Netherlands 14-0 Chile
Player of the Match: Jip Janssen (NED)
Umpires: Rawi Anbananthan (MAS), Dan Barstow (ENG), Gareth Greenfield (NZL-video)
Result: Match 3
Spain 0-4 England
Player of the Match: Phil Roper (ENG)
Umpires: Marcin Grochal (POL), Coen van Bunge (NED), Martin Madden (SCO-video)
Result: Match 4
India 4-2 Wales
Player of the Match: Akashdeep Singh (IND)
Umpires: Jonas van’t Hek (NED), Gareth Greenfield (NZL), Dan Barstow (ENG-video) (UNI)
