Paris Olympics hockey: Why the defeat to Belgium ushers in hope and optimism for India

If any positives can be taken from a loss, India can leave with their heads held high despite a 1-2 reversal against defending men’s hockey champions Belgium at the Paris Olympics on Thursday.

On another sweltering day, Abhishek put India ahead with a rare open-play goal in the second quarter, but the Europeans hit back with two goals in the third period. Despite their best efforts, Harmapreet Singh & Co couldn’t fashion a turnaround.

The Indian skipper had scored two vital goals in the penultimate minutes in the games against New Zealand and Argentina, and he had a chance to do likewise against Belgium as well, but his thunderous drag-flick was deflected away from the target by Florent van Aubel on the goal line. India asked for a video referral in the hope for a penalty stroke, but the replay provided no joy.

There were no points to show for India’s efforts on Thursday, but it was arguably their best performance so far in the tournament. They pressed high up the pitch, showed a lot of intensity and gave the Belgians, coming off a 6-2 thrashing of Australia, a tough time.

The defence held strong and goalkeeper PR Sreejesh thwarted Alexander Hendrickx’s drag-flicks repeatedly, 10 of Belgium’s 11 penalty corners going in vain. But the European stalwarts know more than one way to skin a cat.

A tough loss for us today! We started strong in the first quarter, maintaining a solid defense and creating early chances.

Moving into the second quarter, our team continued to dominate possession and create numerous opportunities. Abhishek shone brightly, scoring our first… pic.twitter.com/Xnz8AO6LZq

— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) August 1, 2024

At the start of the second half, they raised the tempo straightaway. The ball was passed from the centre of the field to the left wing, and after some great work from van Aubel, Thibeau Stockbroekx was at the right place to just turn the ball past Sreejesh and into an unprotected goal.

The equaliser lifted the holders and they had much the better of proceedings from thereon. It could be gauged from the fact that India earned just two penalty corners in the game, their primary avenue for goals in recent times.

The one penalty corner that the Belgians did find joy from, didn’t bring a goal from the initial shot, Sreejesh again keeping Hendrickx at bay, but in the ensuing melee, it was veteran John-John Dohmen who just pushed the ball over the line for the eventual winner.

Despite the defeat, India head coach Craig Fulton sounded upbeat. “It was a good performance. We just need to maintain confidence ahead of our next game and then the quarterfinals,” the South African told Jio Cinema.

“Even when we had a man down due to a yellow card (shown to Raj Kumar Pal), which I didn’t think was warranted, we kept going and created a chance in the 59th minute, which was deflected away from the goal line. I would have been happier with a draw.”

Aussie challenge

That next game, with a turnaround time of little over 24 hours, is against Australia, who bounced back after their drubbing at the hands of Belgium to hand one of their own, New Zealand being at the wrong end of a 0-5 thrashing with Blake Govers getting a hat-trick.

It has been a long time since India got the better of the Aussies in a World Cup or Olympics, but the present batch from Down Under doesn’t quite inspire awe as did the world-beaters under match tactician Ric Charlesworth.

That may give Harmanpreet cause for optimism despite the disappointment against Belgium. “We played well and there was good coordination between midfield and the forward line, but we couldn’t hold on after taking the lead. The defence, may be, could have done better, and we could have been more clinical in attack as well,” he told the broadcasters after the game.

The body language of the Indian players seemed upbeat despite the defeat, as they knew it was a much better performance than the one they dished out against Ireland two days ago, when ironically they had come away with full points.

Abhishek’s goal was arguably the highlight of the Indian performance. He benefitted from some sloppy play by Arthur de Sloover a little outside the Belian circle and despite several Belgian shirts swooping on him, took a low shot on the turn and beat a startled Vincent Vanasch lot on his near post.

But Belgium showed that they can grind out a hard-fought win after a comprehensive performance against a perennial favourite team. They would be pleased with a 2-1 result against a team that finished on the podium three years ago, and has its sights set on another medal in the French capital.

Both teams were already through to the quarterfinals before Thursday’s game. It was a matter of getting themselves in top gear going into the business end of the competition. The other group features heavyweights like The Netherlands, Germany, Spain and Great Britain, and results there have not always gone on expected lines. So, it’s more about the performance in the group matches than ensuring a favourable quarterfinal match-up.

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