Welcome to Sportstar's coverage of Indian men's hockey team's Tokyo 2020 Bronze Medal game against Germany. This was Dominic Richard taking you through the action as it unfurled at the Oi Hockey Stadium.
That's it for today. Thanks for tuning in!
FOLLOW BLOG |
This is the 12th medal for the Indian men's hockey team (eight gold, one silver and three bronze) at the Olympics, which makes it the sole best-performing nation in history. The Germans are close behind in second with 11 (four gold, three silver and four bronze). Tomorrow, the India women's side, which is chasing a first medal at the Games, will take on Great Britain in another bronze-medal clash at 7:00 AM IST.
MATCH REPORT |
And finally, India wins an Olympic medal in hockey! India's last podium finish in the sport -- a gold at the 1980 Moscow Games -- had come 41 years ago. So this bronze will be extremely special for the former hockey superpower. A brace from Simranjeet Singh and goals from Hardik Singh, Harmanpreet Singh (penalty corner) and Rupinder Pal (stroke) guides India to a victory over Germany in a high-scoring thriller.
HIGHLIGHTS:
AND THE MATCH IS OVER! INDIA DEFEATS GERMANY 5-4 TO CLAIM THE BRONZE MEDAL AT THE TOKYO OLYMPICS!!!
60' Sreejesh saves yet another PC, the 12th for Germany this game. But the Germans end up winning one more a few moments later. AND ANOTHER BRILLIANT SAVE! Sreejesh you beauty!
57' Manpreet is back. Germany doesn't have a goalkeeper now. The team has brought in an extra outfield player in an attempt to find the equaliser.
54' WHAT A SAVE! Sreejesh comes to India's rescue yet again during a German penalty corner. Meanwhile, Indian skipper Manpreet is injured and he's not on the field.
52' WHAT A MISS! Indian forward Mandeep Singh was one-on-one was German custodian Stadler after receiving a pass from Amit Rohidas. But he overcomplicated things and fired his shot wide.
50' YELLOW CARD! Germany captain Tobias Hauke comes up with a dangerous tackle. The umpire penalises him and sends him to the dugout. It's a numerical advantage for India now.
48' GOOOAAAAALLLL!!!! GERMANY 4 - 5 INDIA!!! Lukas Windfeder pulls a goal back for Germany. This was the sixth penalty corner he took and the seventh shot he attempted today. And, he finally scores!
THE FOURTH AND FINAL QUARTER IS UNDERWAY!
If the score stays the same for the last 15 minutes, India will win its first Hockey medal at the Olympics since the 1980 Moscow Games, which was 41 years ago. The Indians lead Germany 5-3!
THE THIRD QUARTER IS OVER!
45' The German forwards enter the shooting circle. But India has packed its 'D'. A shot is taken, Sreejesh makes the save. The rebound falls to Germany as well. However, Shamser Singh completes the clearance for India.
42' A COUPLE OF PCs FOR INDIA! And Germany is down to 10 as well. Midfielder Mats Grambusch heads to the bench after committing a foul. However, Rupinder Pal Singh isn't able to convert the penalty corners.
40' Mandeep Singh has dispossessed a couple of German players in the last few minutes. The Indian forwards are attacking with intent here. They are getting more than ample support from the midfielders.
37' Germany has dominated the possessional, attacking and passing stats in this match so far. But all that India needed was a seven-minute period of absolute brilliance, which included four goals, to gain the advantage.
34' WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE???!!!! INDIA SCORES AGAIN!! The Indians have taken a 5-3 lead here. Gurjant Singh came up with a delightful run forward on the right flank. He entered the circle and set up Simranjeet Singh at close range. The latter completed his brace with a crisp finish.
31' PENALTY STROKE FOR INDIA!! AND GOOOOAAAALLLL!!!!! What a comeback from the Indians! Germany has lost its referral in the process. Rupinder Pal Singh just converted his third penalty-stroke goal of the competition.
THE THIRD QUARTER IS UNDERWAY!
India was staring at defeat just a while ago, but the never give up attitude of the team has completely changed the scenario of this game. Five goals came in that quarter -- India equalised 1-1 first, Germany then took the lead again, extended it to 3-1 and the Indians finally drew level 3-3 yet again. An entire half to go. Stay tuned!
THE SECOND QUARTER IS DONE AND DUSTED!
29' GOOOAAAALLL!!!! INDIA 3 - 3 GERMANY! Another Indian PC and Harmanpreet Singh scores his sixth goal of the Tokyo Olympics with an excellent drag-flick. This has to be the most-exciting 15-minute period of the tournament.
27' GOOOOAAAAALLLL!!! INDIA PULLS A GOAL BACK!!!!! This was a Rupinder Pal Singh penalty corner, which was won by Simranjeet Singh. German keeper Alexander Stadler made a save initially, but Hardik Singh put the rebound into goal.
25' GOOOOAAAAALLLLLLL!!!!!! GERMANY 3 - 1 INDIA!!! This was another mistake, a pathetic one from Surender Kumar inside the circle. He lost possession and Benedikt Furk extended the lead for his side.
24' GOOOAAAALLLL!!!! GERMANY TAKES BACK THE LEAD! Nilakanta Sharma gave away the ball cheaply in midfield. Germany immediately moved with numbers forward. Eventually, Christopher Ruhr slipped a pass to Niklas Wellen, who made it 2-1 for the Germans.
20' GOOD SAVE! Germany forward Florian Fuchs took the ball into the shooting circle and fired one on target. But Sreejesh pushed it out to avert the danger.
17' GOOOOAAAAAAALLLLL!!!!! INDIA 1 - 1 GERMANY!!! This was a quick counter-attack from India. Germany was playing a high line up front. Nilakanta Sharma received the ball, evaded a couple of tackles and sent a delightful pass towards Simranjeet Singh, who found the back of the net.
THE SECOND QUARTER STARTS!
A solitary goal from Timur Oruz is the difference between the two teams as Germany holds a 1-0 lead over India after the opening 15 minutes. Three quarters to go. Stay tuned!
THE FIRST QUARTER ENDS!
15' A TRIO OF PENALTY CORNERS FOR GERMANY! The Germans used a referral after the hooter to win the first PC. Lukas Windfeder took all three and the Indian defence stays strong to deny the opposition every single time.
12' ANOTHER GERMANY CHANCE! Johannes Grosse sends a low cross from the left flank. The ball misses everyone and goes out of play. Staib was the closest to it, and a small deflection would have made it 2-0 for the Germans.
10' GOOD SAVE! German midfielder Mats Grambusch receives a long pass up front and enters the circle. He gets past Hardik Singh and releases a shot, which was blocked by Indian keeper PR Sreejesh.
7' India has won one penalty corner so far, which was fired wide by Rupinder Pal Singh a few moments ago. Germany hasn't won any but has dominated the overall possession (52%).
4' GREEN CARD! Germany is down to 10 men in the middle. Constantin Staib has been penalised by the umpire for a poor challenge.
2' GOOOOAAAAALL!!!!!! GERMANY TAKES A 1-0 LEAD!!! Chaos inside the Indian circle. Timm Herzbruch sends the ball to Florian Fuchs, who in turn sets up Timur Oruz. There were a couple of defenders around him, but Oruz still scored.
AND THE MATCH BEGINS!
The players from both teams are out on the field, and it is time for the national anthems, which will be followed by the toss in the middle.
The team lineups are out!
INDIA XI: PR Sreejesh (GK), Rupinder Pal Singh, Surender Kumar, Harmanpreet Singh, Amit Rohidas, Manpreet Singh (C), Hardik Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Dilpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Shamser Singh.
COACH - Graham Reid.
GERMANY XI: Alexander Stadler (GK), Lukas Windfeder, Martin Haner, Johannes Grosse, Tobias Hauke (C), Christopher Ruhr, Benedikt Furk, Florian Fuchs, Mats Grambusch, Timm Herzbruch, Timur Oruz.
COACH - Kais al Saadi.
MATCH PREVIEW:
The Indian men’s hockey team’s dream of winning a first gold medal in 41 years at the Olympics was shattered by a 5-2 loss to Belgium in Tokyo on Tuesday, but the squad has quickly shifted focus to the bronze medal match against Germany.
“We huddled up after the game and I said we cannot change the result but our fortunes in the next game are in our hands. We still have the chance to win a bronze medal and all the senior players will boost the morale of the youngsters to ensure they remain positive ahead of our next game,” skipper Manpreet Singh said.
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Coach Graham Reid, too, wants his team to focus on the game ahead. “To come third, you need to be the third-best team and beat either Australia or Germany [India will face Germany] to win the bronze medal. I am already pushing the fact that it is a team-first mentality. To be a team member we need you to keep your head up and go there and win this bronze medal,” he said.
India went toe-to-toe with the Belgians until the third quarter but fell short in the fourth. “Hockey is about gaining momentum and keeping that momentum. Maybe it was the green card (to Manpreet) and they scored after that. It’s a momentum thing and we lost it. It's very hard to get that momentum back against a team like Belgium,” the coach said.
“We had enough opportunities to win the game. We did not get that scoreboard pressure that we needed. They were always going to come back, they’re the best team in the world along with Australia. We paid that price for not getting that scoreboard pressure on,” he added.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs):
- At what time will the Indian men's hockey team be in action?
The hockey game against Germany will start today at 7:00 AM IST (10:30 AM local time). - Where to watch Indian events at Tokyo Olympics?
The Sony Sports Network will broadcast Tokyo Olympics live in India.
Sony TEN 3 HD/SD will telecast India events with Hindi commentary while Sony TEN 1 HD/SD and Sony TEN 2 HD/SD will have English commentary.
Live streaming of the events will be available on the SonyLIV and JioTV apps.
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