India boosted its Super 4s campaign with a commanding 4-1 win over Malaysia at Rajgir Hockey Stadium on Thursday.
Harmanpreet Singh and his men gave a strong statement by dismantling the most consistent team of the tournament in a one-sided contest.
The victory felt even sweeter as it came less than 24 hours after India had scraped out a hard-fought 2-2 draw against defending champions Korea.
Malaysia strike first blood
Malaysia’s Hassan Shafiq struck within the first 70 seconds to stun the Indian crowd almost immediately. India pushed relentlessly in the opening quarter but couldn’t find the equalizer.
Their frustration deepened in the second quarter after missing four consecutive penalty corners.
Manpreet Singh, the experienced midfielder, scored the equalizer and gave Indian fans some timely relief. A minute later, Sukhjeet Singh added another goal to put India in front.
Shilanand Lakra and Vivek Sagar Prasad followed with two more goals to seal a commanding victory for the Men in Blue.
“It was a very good match. We conceded a goal in the beginning, but still we did not give up and won the match 4-1 in the end. This victory was very important for us,” Indian midfielder Sumit told The Bridge.
Indian Men’s hockey team. (Photo Credit: The Bridge)
India top the Super 4s table
India had missed many chances against Korea a day ago, whereas the team corrected this mistake against Malaysia and became the top team in the Super 4s with a comfortable win.
“Yesterday we created many chances, but unfortunately we could not convert them into goals. Today we got goals on time, and we also covered the field well. In the next match also, the effort will be the same as whenever we get chances, we convert them into goals,” Manpreet said while talking to the media.
He further said, “In the last match, we were missing chances, we were not able to finish properly, but today was very good. Today, Shilanand Lakra and Sukhjeet also scored goals; the score was very good, and this has to be continued.”
Harmanpreet Singh was successful in leading the team to victory in a do-or-die situation. It was also his 250th international match. He credited the team’s defence for the victory.
“The way we defended as a team today was very good. I had said yesterday, after the match, that we want to grow in defense as a team. We did the same today,” Captain Harmanpreet told the media.
After a 2-2 draw with Korea, India had to win the match against Malaysia at all costs. The team showed the form at the right time and defeated the best-looking team of the competition in a one-sided manner.
“We thought that it was a very tough team and the match would be very challenging, but we should play at our standard,” India’s prolific midfielder Hardik Singh spoke to The Bridge.
“These are the matches players want to play. When you play in the Super 4s or quarter finals and semi finals, you have to play strongly as a team,” he added.
‘Mentally prepared’
India will rest on Friday and then face China on Saturday. India has already beaten China 4-3 in the group stage, but China’s morale is high after beating Korea 3-0 on Thursday evening.
“One day’s rest will be very helpful. We are playing back-to-back matches, and this weakens the body a bit. When we have a match with China, we will give our 100%. Mentally, we are prepared that we will look match by match. Victory is necessary for the World Qualifier, but we will look match by match only,” said Hardik Singh while talking to The Bridge.
India’s coach Craig Fulton is happy to rest on Friday before a big match against China. He thinks that the team has taken the right path with the business end of the tournament around the corner.
“The team is definitely moving in the right direction. The boys are more comfortable playing the tournament games. It’s difficult to play at 7:30 at night; it’s a long day, but I think the rhythm is good, and everyone is happy,” Fulton told The Bridge.
“It’s good to have a rest day, and we obviously rely heavily on our preparation, so we’re looking forward to resting tomorrow, and then we get ready to play China. We cannot do more than what we are doing. We are building. It doesn’t help playing your best hockey in the first three games and then you don’t finish strong,” he added.
