The Indian hockey team reigned supreme over Great Britain in the drama-filled quarter-final clash at the Paris Olympics 2024. The Harmanpreet Singh-led side thrashed the Brits 4-0 in a penalty shootout at the Yves-du-Manoir stadium.
The match was tied at 1-1 at full time which then led to a nerve-wrecking shootout. India’s veteran goalkeeper, PR Sreejesh, banked on his experience in keeping the nets restricting the opposition to only two goals.
India pulled off the victory despite receiving a major blow in the 17th minute when Amit Rohidas was shown a red card after his stick hit William Calnan’s head. While the on-field did not immediately hand the red card to Rohidas, he was penalized after video referral.
Despite losing one of the key players, the 10-men Indian hockey team did not lose hope and showed character to pull off a heist in a pressure-situation.
Read More
Second Consecutive Semifinal for Indian Hockey Team
The Indian hockey team will now play Germany in the semifinal clash scheduled on August 6. This is India’s second consecutive semifinal at the Olympics. India will, however, have 15 members in their squad for the semis instead of 16 as Rohidas has been suspended for a match by the FIH Technical Delegate for a breach of the FIH Code of Conduct..
Interestingly, India and Germany faced each other in the bronze medal match at the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. India had won that match 5-4 to secure a historic bronze medal. In Paris, the Indian hockey team will be looking forward to reaching the final having defeated Germany in the last Olympics.
Also Read: Paris Olympics 2024: Know The 5 Debutants In Indian Hockey Squad
In the other semifinal match, the Netherlands will take on Spain on August 6. It is to be noted that Spain stunned the reigning Olympic champions Belgium 3-2 scoring two goals in the last five minutes of the match. The Dutch, on the other hand, prevailed 2-0 over Australia, the silver medallists at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, to make it to the semifinals.
