HOBART, Feb 23: The Indian men’s hockey team, after a prolonged slump in the FIH Pro League, will look to turn the tide when it takes on Spain in the reverse fixture on Tuesday, drawing confidence from hard-earned lessons in the gritty stalemate against Australia.
India have endured a tough run in the nine-team tournament, losing five and drawing one across the two legs in Rourkela and Hobart. The mounting defeats have intensified scrutiny on coach Craig Fulton, who is facing growing criticism over the team’s dismal showing.
However, there was a silver lining for India, who also made a mid-tournament captaincy change after regular skipper Harmanpreet Singh pulled out of the Hobart leg for personal reasons, with young midfielder Hardik Singh stepping in.
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They held the Kookaburras to a 2-2 draw in regulation time before losing 4-5 in the shoot-out, earning their first point of the campaign.
Against Spain, who beat them 2-0 in the opening game on Saturday, India will hope to script a resurgence — especially recalling their win over the Spaniards in the bronze-medal match at the 2024 Summer Olympics.
The two sides have shared a competitive rivalry over the years with results swinging both ways, and India will be eager to build on that history to regain momentum.
With Amit Rohidas and Jugraj Singh handing India a 2-0 lead against Australia, the familiar issue of conceding late goals resurfaced as the hosts clawed back and sealed the contest in a penalty shoot-out.
Still, the fightback offered a significant morale boost after India were swept aside in all four matches in Rourkela, including a crushing 0-8 defeat by Argentina.
Shilanand Lakra too showed flashes of brilliance, his sharp run and reverse-hit beating the Australian goalkeeper before the effort was ruled out for a back-stick infringement. Young Aditya Lalage also made a strong impression.
From here, India can at best look to salvage some pride as they sit eighth in the nine-team FIH Pro League table with just one point from six matches.
Pakistan are the only side below them, having endured a controversy-hit campaign in Australia and at home. They have lost all eight matches so far and are yet to open their account.
This will be India’s penultimate match of the Hobart leg, followed by a clash against Australia on Wednesday. The action then shifts to Europe in June, where India will play in the Netherlands, Belgium and England.
But before that, India’s immediate goal is to pick up points and climb the table, currently led by Belgium (8 games, 22 points), Australia (7 games, 20 points) and Argentina (8 games, 17 points).
A strong showing in the FIH Pro League will be crucial ahead of a year that includes the Asian Games in Japan, which doubles as the Los Angeles Olympics qualifying tournament, serving as a key benchmark for team selection. (PTI)
