The Indian men’s hockey team defeated France 5-4 in their fourth and final match of the Five Nations Tournament in Valencia on Saturday.
The contest saw Jugraj Singh (20’, 60’), captain Harmanpreet Singh (25’, 56’) and the young Vivek Sagar Prasad (16’) find the net for India.
The first quarter saw France take the lead by via a penalty corner conversion from Lucas Montecot (11’).
India quickly equalised early in the second quarter after a field goal from Vivek.
Jugraj then put India in the lead after converting a penalty corner before Harmanpreet (25’) doubled the lead through another penalty corner.
France was soon awarded a penalty stroke and Etienne Tynevez (28’) scored to make full use of it as the score read 3-2 in favour of India at half-time.
France equalized late in the third quarter with a field goal from Gaspard Baumgarten (43’). With the score reading 3-3, both the teams tried to break through each other’s defence in the final quarter.
France stole the lead through another penalty corner conversion by Tynevez (53’) but their joy was short-lived, as Harmanpreet scored through a penalty corner to bring up his second goal.
Jugraj then returned to score his second goal through yet another penalty corner as India went on to win 5-4 and end their tournament on a high.
The win ended India’s losing streak in the tournament, where they had lost their first three matches to Spain, Belgium, and Germany respectively.
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