The Tokyo 2020 silver medallist, Australia, ranked fourth in the world, lost 3-2 against India in its final Paris 2024 Olympics hockey Pool B match on Friday. This is India’s first Olympic match against Australia since 1972, at Munich.
India went off to an impressive 2-0 advantage at the start of the second quarter. Abhishek scored his second goal in as many games in the 12th minute during open play and in the 13th, captain Harmanpreet Singh scored from a penalty corner (PC). The Australians had a few attempts at the Indian goal in the first quarter, but goalkeeper P.R. Sreejesh was more than up to the task.
Thomas Craig’s goal in the 25th minute gave Australia a 1-2 lead at the halftime. Harmanpreet extended India’s lead to 3-1 in the third quarter by scoring on a penalty stroke following a successful video referral. Harmanpreet’s drag-flick impacted Flynn Ogilvie’s foot on the line, but the referee missed it, leading to the review.
In the last quarter, Australia put up a strong fight and even gave India a fright when Blake Govers scored a penalty stroke to make the score 3-2. Yet India maintained calm to close the group stage with a win.
