Men’s Hockey, Paris Olympics 2024: On Tuesday, August 6, India lost 2-3 to Germany in a close last-four match, missing a fantastic opportunity to make it to the Olympic hockey final for the first time in 44 years.
Prior to the Germans regrouping and gaining the crucial momentum, the Indians got off to a strong start and controlled the early exchanges.
India had a fantastic chance to advance to their first Olympic final since the 1980 Games, but Germany’s key goal in the fourth and final quarter crushed their dreams.
India’s scorers were skipper Harmanpreet Singh (7th) and Sukhjeet Singh (36th), while Germany’s scorers were Gonzalo Peillat (18th), Christopher Ruhr (27th), and Marco Miltkau (54th).
Germany will now play the Netherlands in the final, while India will play Spain for the bronze medal.
In the first quarter, the Indians were aggressive, applying pressure to the German defense and Harmanpreet’s goal gave them the lead.
Nevertheless, the Germans, who are renowned for their unwavering will, rallied powerfully in the second quarter and took the lead when Ruhr converted a penalty shot. Peillat had first equalized the score from a penalty corner.
Penalty corners proved to be the source of both Indian goals, as Sukhjeet skillfully deflected in a variation from Harmanpreet’s flick in the 36th minute.
The Germans launched a fierce drive in the fourth and final quarter, and Miltkau’s deflection of a cross to break Indian hearts was the winning goal six minutes before the final whistle.
Despite only converting on one of their 11 penalty corners, the Indians had their opportunities throughout the game. In contrast, Germany managed to secure a mere four penalty corners.
Notably, Amit Rohidas, India’s star defender, was suspended for one game after receiving a contentious red card in the quarterfinal encounter against Great Britain.
India advanced to the semifinals after defeating GBR 4–2 in a shootout during the quarterfinals, while Germany triumphed against Argentina.
In the first semi-final earlier in the day, the Netherlands defeated Spain 4-0 to secure a spot in the gold medal match.
