Rupinder Pal Singh has made it to the top five goal scorers list with his fourth goal of the league today
And here is how the points table looks after Friday’s match
India captain Manpreet Singh said the team did not start well. The way the team fought back in the fourth quarter will give them a lot of confidence going into Saturday’s match.
FULL TIME: India 3 Australia 4: Australia hang in the dying minutes to eke out a 4-3 win. But India would be proud with the way they fought back from a 1-4 deficit.
60th minute: India 3 Australia 4: India have now withdrawn the goalkeeper and are looking for a final attack and find the goal.
58th minute: India 3 Australia 4: India are pushing for an equaliser and raised the tempo. Lalit Upadhyay makes a run from the right flank but his pass from the right is intercepted well by the defender.
54th minute: India 3 Australia 4: Sreejesh keeps India in the game as he blocks a one-on-one attempt from Anderson.
GOAL1 52nd minute: India 3 Australia 4: And India is clawing their way back into this match. Rupinder Pal Singh converts the team’s fourth penalty corner with a low drag flick to the left of the goalkeeper to reduce Australia’s margin to just one goal now.
51st minute: India 2 Australia 4: Australia get their second penalty corner. India unsuccessfully challenges the decision but Amit Rohidas thwarts the danger with a strong run to block the drag flick.
47nd minute: India 2 Australia 4: India create yet another chance with a move down the middle but this time Akashdeep’s shot from the top of the circle goes wide.
GOAL! 46th minute: India 2 Australia 4: The second half is beginning to look like a goal fest. Raj Kumar Pal was left all alone on the top of the striking circle and he unleashed a hit across the goalkeeper and in the goal. Can Indian still find a way to fight back from here.
END OF THIRD QUARTER, 42nd minute: India 1 Australia 4: If Raj Kumar Pal’s goal had raised any hope of an Indian fightback, then the Australians have nipped it in the bud with two goals within a span of a minute.
GOAL! 42nd minute: India 1 Australia 4: And Australia has extended their lead even further with Jacob Anderson giving finishing touches to the move from the left flank.
GOAL! 41st minute: India 1 Australia 3: Indian defenders once again allow the Australians too much space to make a run from the right and Sharp makes no mistake with the finish.
38th minute: India 1 Australia 2: Australia get their first penalty corner but Pathak stood tall to save the drag flick from Corey Weyer.
36th minute: India 1 Australia 2: Lalit Upadhyay earns India’s second penalty corner with a quick turn and pushing the ball on the Australian defenders foot. The Australian runner once again stops Rupinder’s drag flick but India get another penalty corner. His shot this time is stopped by the goalkeeper but Raj Kumar Pal was
GOAL! 36th minute: India 1 Australia 2: Lalit Upadhyay earns India’s second penalty corner with a quick turn and pushing the ball on the Australian defenders foot. The Australian runner once again stops Rupinder’s drag flick but India get another penalty corner. His shot this time is stopped by the goalkeeper but Raj Kumar Pal was in the right place to score on the rebound with the reverse hit.
35th minute: India 0 Australia 2: India get’s the first penalty corner of the match as Surender Kumar’s hit inside the circle finds the leg of an Australian defender. But the runner blocks Rupinder’s shot to avoid any trouble.
32nd minute: India 0 Australia 2: Wotherspoon could have extended Australia’s lead there. But Birender Lakra comes up with a fine interception and the ball goes over the goal line.
HALF TIME: India 0 Australia 2: India were clearly chasing the game through out the first 30 minutes. Australia have maintained their shape and not allowed the hosts to find any space to launch attacks. Will be interesting to see what tactics coach Graham Reid now adopts.
30th minute: India 0 Australia 2: Harmanpreet tries to dribble past an Australian player to enter the striking circle but ends up kicking the ball as he doesn’t find enough space.
28th minute: India 0 Australia 2: Australia clearly have the upper hand in the first half of this match. They have hardly given India any openings to build a strong attack. And when Indian midfield has managed to show some of their stick work to make a decent enough run, their defenders have been quick to close rank and take the ball away.
22nd minute: India 0 Australia 2: First real chance from India and the referee gives India their first penalty corner. But Australia successfully challenges the decision.
GOAL! 18th minute: India 0 Australia 2: And while the Indian team was still regrouping after the green card to skipper Manpreet Singh, the Australians build a counter from the left and Tom Wickham finds the back of the net to extend Australia’s lead.
17th minute: India 0 Australia 1: Not much there in terms of circle entries between the two teams. just four for both. And now both teams are down to 10 players.
END OF FIRST QUARTER: India 0 Australia 1: India haven’t been able to find a way past the strong Australian structure. They have tried to penetrate from the right or by putting in the long balls but everything has been intercepted.
12th minute: India 0 Australia 1: There was a chance for Lalit Upadhyay to test the Australian goalkeeper but he cannot trap the ball inside the striking circle.
9th minute: India 0 Australia 1: Both teams haven’t really managed to make any clear in roads in the opponent’s area so far. India have been a bit passive compared to their earlier matches in the competition.
GOAL! 6th minute: India 0 Australia 1: And that is why Australia are so dangerous. Rupinder Pal Singh was guilty of pushing a loose aerial ball and the Aussies pounce on it in the middle and Dylan Wotherspoon perfectly directs the ball inside the ball.
5th minute: India 0 Australia 0: Both teams haven’t really managed to make any clear in roads in the opponent’s area so far. India have been a bit passive compared to their earlier matches in the competition.
And here is the Australian line up for the game
India makes four chances to their starting line up from the last game against Belgium
7.05 pm: Time of the national anthem as the two teams walk out on the park.
7.03 pm: Australia coach says India has lot more belief and are expecting a good competition
7.00 pm: India coach Graham Reid says what’s really important for the team is to convert the opportunities they create at the earliest and convert them. Also he wants the team to concede less penalty corners.
6.55 pm: The head to head record is clearly lopsided towards the Aussies. But its fresh game today and the Indian team definitely won’t be bothering much about it.
6.45 pm: The two teams have played four matches each in the league so far and India are two point ahead of the defending champions. Here is the look their results in the first two rounds.
INDIA
India 5, Netherlands 2
India 3, Netherlands 3 – 3-1 after shoot-out
India 2, Belgium 1
India 2, Belgium 3
Australia
Australia 2, Belgium 2 – 2-4 after shoot-out
Australia 2, Belgium 4Australia 4, Great Britain 4 – Australia win 3-1 after shoot-out
Australia 5, Great Britain 1
6.30 pm: India have had a dream start to their FIH Pro League hockey campaign with two impressive wins over Netherlands before sharing the spoils with world champions Belgium with one win and a loss in the second round.
Despite the defeat in their last outing, the Indian team would be high on confidence simply because of the way they have played in the competition so far.
The hosts don’t really have an impressive track record against the Australians, who have been running rough shoulders over the Indian team for the last four years. But even they have struggled for form in this competition so far and Manpreet Singh and company would be hoping to capitalise on it on Friday.
You can read the preview of the match here.