FIH Pro League: Indian men lose 2-3 to Australia in first match of Antwerp leg - Highlights
20' A brilliant save from Suraj Karkera holds India's narrow lead
Australian striker Joe Rintala took a direct shot at Suraj Karkara in a one-on-one situation, but it was easily saved by the Indian as he made himself and got down in a low posture.
End of First Quarter: India 1-0 Australia
Australia looked the most attacking side in the first quarter, but it wasn't enough for them to break the deadlock as Indian defence showed a good man-marking and didn't allow any space to the Australian team.
Takinf advantage of their solid defense, Indian attackers find a fe good attacks and handed in their first goal of the match thanks to Abhishek powerful down the line snapshot on right flank.
8' India takes the lead with a brilliant down-the-line shot from the edge of the circle
A brilliant defense-splitting pass from Manpreet found Abhishek, who, despite having three-four defenders in front of him, found an accurate shot in the right corner to give India an early advantage.
India 1-0 Australia
5' Australia takes the charge in the first five minutes
Australia takes on India and uses short passes to build up some attacks from the right flank, but the Indian team defends well and also tries to push quick counterattacks.
India 0-0 Australia
Both teams have entered the arena to start their Antwerp leg
The National Anthems are currently under place
India is aiming to jump back into the top two with an outright win
India had a horrid last week, losing all four games of the Amsterdam leg against the Netherlands and Argentina.
Although India lost all the matches by a margin of a single goal, which gives some hope that the team can bounce back if they find the solution to their small hindrance in the final moments.
Currently, India is in sixth position on the FIH Pro League standings, with 15 points out of 12 matches, but an outright win today can push them back into the top 2.
Indian men to take on Australia at 2:00 PM IST
The Indian men's hockey team will begin its final leg of the 2024-25 FIH Pro League season today in Antwerp, Belgium. They will play four matches in this leg, two each against Australia and host Belgium.
This will be the first major meeting between the two sides after the Paris Olympics where India endged past Australia by 3-2.
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