We've seen this play out far too many times. A slow start and a slow ending, and a disappointing result for the Indian men's hockey team. In their Paris 2024 Olympics opener against New Zealand, they displayed these familiar failings -- a slow start that led to the concession of an opening goal, an equaliser, taking the lead, and conceding again. A 2-2 result would've made their task of making it to the quarterfinal tricker, even though this was just their first match and four out of six in the group qualify. That's because they would have to face better teams in Argentina, Australia and Belgium later in their campaign.
Then, with a minute to go, India won a penalty corner.
Enter, captain Harmanpreet Singh. His first effort was blocked, appeals were made for a stroke, but it's a penalty corner instead. Harmanpreet lined up again, whipped in the dragflick and the ball ricocheted off the goalkeeper to hit Simon Child's helmet. A penalty stroke. Harmanpreet. 3-2. Of course.
You'd have thought that was it, but... with 40 seconds to go, New Zealand broke through India's defence far too easily and Hayden Phillips took a shot with just keeper PR Sreejesh in front of him, only to miss. India survived, and a vital win was earned.
Now, even taking into account the late drama, this wasn't the best of games for either team, but a hard-fought victory in their Olympic opening match should mean something for the Indians.
First, how did India survive?
New Zealand are not counted among world's best teams but India have suffered against them in the past. In fact, at last year's World Cup in India, New Zealand knocked India out even before the quarterfinals. So, this was never going to be an easy game.
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In Paris, India's start once again followed recognizable patterns. Their forwards struggled to create chances, the intensity was a bit off and they conceded the first goal. New Zealand scored from their first penalty corner of the match, Sam Lane with a superb finish to beat Sreejesh in the opening quarter.
Initially, India couldn't respond to going behind. In fact, they were still struggling to create clear cut chances when a break came in the second quarter: and they won their first penalty corner. Harmanpreet's dragflick was blocked, but Mandeep Singh reacted quickly and got his stick in the way as New Zealand were trying to clear. The ball deflected off his stick to the top corner of the goal.
It was in the third quarter that the match really opened up. Both teams were pushing a bit to take the lead, which resulted in spaces opening up on the field, and brought out the best from goalkeepers Dominic Dixon and Sreejesh. In a short span, a superb double save by Dixon was followed by Sreejesh saving his team twice, one from open play and another from a dragflick.
India eventually took the lead late in the third quarter thanks to Vivek Sagar Prasad. Dixon did pull off a save but Vivek got the ball off a deflection and sent it goalwards from close range. New Zealand cleared the ball, but it was deemed to have crossed the goalline. Multiple replays were shown to the TV umpire, but with no advice was possible, the goal stayed.
In the fourth quarter, New Zealand went all out. They kept the pressure up, winning multiple penalty corners, and the equaliser was coming. Eventually, Child converted a deflection from a penalty corner to make it 2-2 with seven minutes to go.
After the equaliser, New Zealand kept creating chances, only for Sreejesh to stand tall and deny them. The veteran, who had announced he would retire from the sport after these Games, was at his best on Saturday.
A win to boost confidence
As they say in sport, a win is a win. A draw or a loss in this opener would've made India's qualification task tougher and the teams' morale would've suffered. The Olympics is the toughest tournament in hockey, and it is crucial for any team to begin their campaign with a win. India did that, despite not playing at their best.
Coach Craig Fulton wants control and strong defence, and those aspects were hardly seen in this match. It could've been costly, but he will hope the win helps ease over starting nerves and build confidence in the team.
They still must fix their issues - they cannot concede so many penalty corners (nine) and neither can they afford to start with such less intensity. For now, they will be happy that they finished the job and secured all three points. Tougher tests await, but they should take the optimism gained in today to all those matches.