Paris Olympics men’s hockey: Germany enters finals; India to fight for bronze
India went down fighting against Germany 3-2 and will be up against Spain in the bronze medal play-off
Germany players celebrate after scoring a goal during the second semifinal of the men’s hockey match against India at the Paris Olympics, in Paris on August 6, 2024.
| Photo Credit: Ritu Raj Konwar
A relentless Germany dashed the spirited Indian side’s dream of a berth in the final by recording a come-from-behind 3-2 win in the semifinals of the men’s hockey competition in the Paris Olympics at the Yves du Manoir Stadium here on Tuesday.
In a match swinging like a pendulum, world champion Germany showed its all-round brilliance scoring a goal apiece through penalty corner, a stroke and a field move.
India gave a matching fight, but paid the penalty of converting only two of its 11 short corners.
Despite the loss, India, the bronze medallist of the Tokyo Olympics, will have another shot at the medal as it will play the third place match on Thursday.
In the first 30 minutes the momentum shifted from India to Germany.
The Indians made some excellent forays to earn as many as seven penalty corners in the opening quarter and captain Harmanpreet Singh scored off the sixth one to please thousands of the Indian fans, including elite sportspersons such as Abhinav Bindra, Randhir Singh, PT. Usha and Dilip Tirkey.
With Paul-Phillip Kaufmann distributing the ball beautifully, Germany built pressure.
Having displayed a fine show of organised defence against its spectacular win over Great Britain in the quarterfinals, the Indians held their nerves and tried their best to save their post even as the match with high stakes became a bit physical and a fiercely-competed affair.
The omnipresent Hardik Singh played a critical role as he worked hard to feed the forwards and fall back seamlessly to bolster the defence and make some smart clearances.
Germany made a superb comeback through Peillat Gonzalez’s crisp shot off the team’s first short corner early in the second quarter.
Abhishek and Lalit Upadhyay missed clear chances and opportunities to put Germany on the back foot again.
Germany’s second penalty corner resulted in a stroke as the goal-bound ball hit Jarmanpreet Singh’s foot closer to the post. Germany’s leading scorer Christopher Ruhr shot home low and goalkeeper P.R. Sreejesh could do little.
The team’s composure brought it four more penalty corners in the initial part of the third quarter which went in India’s favour due to its players’ composure. Harmanpreet’s shot was deflected home by Sukhjeet Singh as India levelled the scores.
India’s marvellous combined defence denied the Germans despite their multiple attempts from their third short corner in the final period.
In the last 10 minutes, Germany got an upper hand picking up two penalty corners and scoring off a surprise attack. Peillat’s grounded shot from the left corner of the circle was deflected in by Marco Miltkau to make it 3-2 with six minutes left.
Sreejesh was taken off to boost India’s attack and Germany utilised the opportunity to earn another short corner. It did not result in any further damage though.
India tried its best and Shamsher Singh’s last second attempt went over the bar to the disappointment of the Indian camp and loud celebrations for the Germans.
The result: Germany 3 (Peillat 18-pc, Ruhr 27-ps, Miltkau-54) bt India 2 (Harmanpreet 7-pc, Sukhjeet-36).
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