India’s men’s hockey team made a winning start to their Paris Olympics campaign, edging out New Zealand 3-2 in a thrilling Pool B encounter on Saturday. Skipper Harmanpreet Singh emerged as the hero, scoring the decisive goal from the spot a minute before full time.
New Zealand drew first blood through Sam Lane’s penalty corner in the 8th minute. However, India responded with a penalty corner conversion by Mandeep Singh in the 24th minute. Vivek Sagar Prasad gave India the lead four minutes into the second half, but Simon Child equalized for New Zealand with another penalty corner in the 53rd minute.
As the match entered its final stages, India pressed relentlessly for the winning goal. Sukhjeet Singh’s smart play earned them a penalty corner, which was initially saved by New Zealand goalkeeper Dominic Dixon. However, the ball struck Child on the body, resulting in a penalty stroke. Harmanpreet stepped up and calmly converted the spot-kick to secure a vital victory for India.
Despite the win, India’s chief coach Craig Fulton may have some concerns about the team’s penalty corner conversion rate. India earned five penalty corners but converted only one, while New Zealand had nine set pieces and utilized two.
India will face a formidable challenge in their next Pool B match against Argentina on Monday.
