World League Final | As it Happened: India Lose 0-1 to Argentina
India knocked out of the Hockey World League Final after losing 0-1 to Argentina in the semis.
India Lose in Semis
India knocked out of the Hockey World League Final after losing 0-1 to Argentina in the semis.
The Manpreet Singh-led side will play the bronze medal on Sunday, 10 December while Argentina qualify for their first World League gold-medal match.
India Miss!
With about 10 minutes to go before final whistle, India get two brilliant chances to score but fail to net a goal.
In the 51st minute, Akashdeep Singh’s shot goes just wide. Gurjant Singh then pushes the ball towards the top of the goal, but the goalkeeper blocks it.
Dying minutes of the game, and India need a goal!
Argentina Lead 1-0 After Q3
Forty-five minutes into the game and India is yet to score a goal. After missing several chances, the hosts need to make a comeback in the last 15 minutes to avoid getting knocked out.
India Waste Two PCs
India win its first penalty corner in the third quarter. But Rupinder Pal Singh flicks the ball over the post. Immediately after, the hosts get another penalty corner which is cleared by the goalkeeper.
1-0 at Half-Time
Despite the puddles on the turf interrupting the speed of the ball, the first half of the India’s semi-final match against Argentina featured quick passes. India is yet to score a goal as the visitors lead by one goal at half-time.
Though it’s continuing to rain, the stands are full of fans cheering for their team.
India 0 - 1 Argentina
Manpreet Gets Yellow Card
Indian captain Manpreet Singh gets a yellow card and is suspended from the game for 10 minutes. India is down to 10 men.
Argentina Take Lead
Gonzalo Peillat converted the first penalty corner of the game in the 17th minute to help Argentina take a 1-0 lead. India challenged the referee’s decision to give Argentina a penalty corner. However, since the video referee could not give a decision, India got to keep their referral and Argentina got a PC.
First Quarter
The first quarter is now underway with both teams trying to score even as heavy rain has slowed down the game. Just over five minutes into the game and Argentina have lost their referral in India’s 23 yard while asking for a penalty corner.
In the 16th minute, SV Sunil passed the ball right in front of the goal, however, a Argentinian defender cleared it. Neither teams manage to net a goal in the first 15 minutes.
India 0-0 Argentina
India's Starting XI
India has announced the eleven players who will be starting the semi-final match against Argentina at the Kalinga Stadium. Argentina have won the toss and chosen to start the game.
The two teams have lined up for their respective national anthems. The game will begin shortly.
India Lead Head-to-Head
Argentina might be the reigning Olympic champions, but the Indians have better head-to-head record against them. In the 46 games they have played so far, India has won 26, lost 16 while four ended in a tie.
In fact, India were the only team that defeated Argentina to their way to gold medal triumph in 2016 Olympics. In Rio, the Indians defeated the Los Leones 2-1 in the pool stages.
India vs World No 1 Argentina
After a massive win against better-ranked Belgium, India face World No 1 Argentina in the semi-final match of the Hockey World League Final in Bhubaneswar on Friday, 8 December.
The hosts weren’t exactly favourites to reach this stage of the tournament after they finished the pool-stage without any wins. After a 1-1 draw against Australia in their tournament opener, the hosts lost 2-3 and 0-2 against England and Germany, respectively.
Their quarter-final opponents on the other hand, had gone into the knock-out game with three back-to-back wins.
ICYMI: Here are the highlights of India’s thrilling quarter-final win.
Fifth-ranked India however stunned the Red Lions by taking a 2-0 lead in the third quarter. And though the scores were tied at 3-3 at full time, a goal by Harmanpreet Singh and a stunning save by goalkeeper Akash Chikte in the penalty shoot-out helped India pull off a massive upset.
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