The Netherlands secured a 3-1 victory over India at the Wagener Stadion to reach the World Cup semifinals, pushing India to the bottom of Pool E and the brink of elimination.
Netherlands booked their spot in the Men’s hockey World Cup semifinals with a clinical 3-1 victory over India at a packed Wagener Stadion on Saturday, leaving Craig Fulton’s side on the verge of tournament elimination.
India put up a spirited fight early on, showing improved ball control and denying the Dutch space. Dilpreet Singh came close to opening the scoring for India, but his deflected effort was booted clear by Netherlands goalkeeper Derk Meijer.
The Dutch took momentum in the third quarter and broke the deadlock in the 40th minute when Duco Telgenkamp flicked in Tijmen Rayenga’s loose shot-cum-pass past Suraj Karkera. In the 50th minute, a three-pass counter-attack concluded with Tjep Hoedemakers deflecting Koen Bijen’s fierce slapshot into the net to make it 2-0.
India responded a minute later on their sixth penalty corner, with Harmanpreet Singh dragging a shot into the bottom left corner to halve the deficit. However, India's comeback hopes were dashed in the 54th minute after Jorrit Croon dispossessed Manpreet Singh and fed Thijs van Dam, who flicked the ball over keeper Mohith H.S. before slapping it home.
The result leaves India at the bottom of Pool E. To keep their qualification hopes alive, India must beat Argentina by four goals or more in their final pool match on Monday and rely on the Netherlands to defeat England on the same day. Argentina boosted their own chances by defeating England 3-1 later on Saturday.
Reporting sourced from The Hindu Hockey. Photo courtesy The Hindu Hockey.