The Indian men’s hockey team produced a remarkable attacking display to beat Pakistan 7-1 in their FIH Pro League match at London’s Lee Valley and Tennis Centre on Friday.
India had seven different scorers as they dismantled Pakistan in the second half after their opponents took the lead early in the game.
For India, Sukhjeet Singh, Harmanpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Jugraj Singh, Abhishek, Raj Kumar Pal and Dilpreet Singh scored while Abu Mahmood converted from a penalty corner for Pakistan.
In the 13th minute, Mahmood came up with a solid dragflick to beat India goalkeeper Mohith HS but India equalised seven minutes later after Harmanpreet’s dragflick took a deflection off Sukhjeet.
It was tight in the second quarter until Pakistan’s Ahmad Nadeem took a nasty hit on the eyeball which resulted in him walking off the pitch on a wheelchair and later going to the hospital. After a lengthy break in play, India pushed hard and scored in the next few minutes. Harmanpreet finally converted his penalty corner chance, a vicious strike to the top right corner.
After the break, India went all out. Hardik got a chance after Mandeep Singh earned a stroke with his shot hitting a Pakistan defender’s body on the line. Hardik made no mistake from the spot in the 34th minute. A minute later, Jugraj Singh got his chance on the scoresheet, a rare field goal from him as Pakistan couldn’t stop India’s lightning quick counter-attack.
Abhishek then added the fifth with his trademark fierce reverse hit in the 41st minute and three minutes later, Raj Kumal Pal guided the ball for India’s sixth. The final quarter was end to end stuff with both teams having chances. It was Dilpreet’s time to score in the 54th minute when he converted from a close range.
This win takes India from second bottom on the table to seventh spot with 17 points from 15 games. They have one more left to play in the league, which is against England on Sunday.
Pakistan have lost all their 15 games and they conceded seven goals in a match for a third time this season.
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