Courtesy: Hockey India

Courtesy: Hockey India

On Wednesday, October 23, the Indian men’s hockey team lost to Germany by a 0-2 scoreline in the first match of the two-match bilateral series at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in Delhi. The Indian players created more than enough opportunities to find themselves on the scoresheet, but it was the German defence, which stood firm in the face of adversity.

In the first quarter, Germany were quite dominant in attack from the get-go, with Henrik Mertgens scoring the opening goal in the fourth minute after a sloppy display of defensive play from the Indian players. After going 0-1 behind, the Indian attackers started to assert themselves, winning six penalty corners in the first half, but they were unable to find the back of the net in the face of a sturdy defence from the visitors.

Harmanpreet Singh uncharacteristically missed penalty stroke against Germany

At the stroke of half-time, India won a penalty stroke, but the captain Harmanpreet Singh uncharacteristically missed the golden opportunity to level the scoreline at 1-1. Within a few seconds, Germany won the penalty corner at the other end, and Lukas Windfeder made no mistake off the rebound as the visitors took a 2-0 lead going into the break.

During the 41st minute of the first bilateral match of the series, India won their seventh penalty corner of the afternoon, but Germany’s defence were quite exceptional as a unit, to keep their lead intact. The fourth quarter saw India keep on pushing for the first goal of the contest, but the Germans were able to secure a clean sheet at the end.