Indian men's team suffers 1-5 defeat against the Netherlands in final SA tour game

The Indian men's hockey team suffered a 1-5 thrashing at the hand of the Netherlands in its final match of the South Africa tour in Cape Town on Sunday.

For India, Abhishek (39') scored the lone goal after the Netherlands took a 5-0 lead in the third quarter.

Jip Janssen (10', 28'), Duco Telgenkamp (16'), Tjep Hoedemakers (21'), and Koen Bijen (35') were on target for the Dutch side.

The match began with Netherlands taking an early advantage as Jip Janssen found the back of the nets in the 10th minute to give his side the lead. Despite repeated attacks, India was unable to cover the deficit by the end of the first quarter.

At the start of the second quarter, Duco Telgenkamp (16') doubled his side's lead. Minutes later, Tjep Hoedemakers (21') scored the third goal for the Netherlands, building more pressure on India. Jip Janssen (28') scored late in the second quarter as the Dutch side went into halftime with a 4-0 lead.

India began searching for early goals in the second half, but Koen Bijen (35') managed to get another goal for the Netherlands. Abhishek (39') finally managed to get a goal back for India as the third quarter finished with India trailing 1-5.

India showcased urgency in the final 15 minutes but the Netherlands defence continued to thwart away any signs of attacks. India, too, remained firm in their defence in the last quarter, not allowing any more goals on their end. The match ended with Netherlands maintaining their 5-1 lead.