The Indian men’s hockey team will compete for the bronze medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics after a closely contested 3-2 defeat against world champions Germany in the semi-finals. This marks the second consecutive Olympics where India will vie for the bronze medal, following their success at Tokyo 2020.
India, ranked fifth globally, started strong in the semi-final match held on Tuesday. Harmanpreet Singh capitalized on a penalty corner in the seventh minute, giving India an early lead. However, Germany, ranked second, quickly equalized through Gonzalo Peillat in the 18th minute. Christopher Ruehr then put Germany ahead in the 27th minute.
The Indian team, who claimed bronze at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, fought back with Sukhjeet Singh leveling the score in the 36th minute. Despite their efforts, a late goal by Marco Miltkau in the 54th minute sealed Germany’s place in the final, preventing India from reaching the Olympics men’s hockey final for the first time since Moscow 1980.
India will face Spain in the bronze medal match. Spain, ranked eighth, were defeated 4-0 by the Netherlands in their semi-final clash. The match will take place at the Yves-du-Manoir Stadium in Colombes, where India previously showed strong form.
India’s match against Germany began with an early penalty corner in their favor within the first two minutes. Harmanpreet Singh’s shot was saved by German goalkeeper Jean-Paul Danneebrg, while Indian goalkeeper PR Sreejesh made a crucial save off Marco Miltkau. India maintained pressure on Germany, culminating in Harmanpreet Singh scoring his eighth goal of the tournament, leading the scoring charts at Paris 2024.
Germany responded effectively in the second quarter, with Gonzalo Peillat scoring from their first penalty corner. India missed opportunities to regain the lead, including a missed target by Abhishek and another missed chance by Lalit Upadhyay. Germany capitalized on a penalty stroke awarded after a penalty corner, with Christopher Ruehr converting to give Germany a 2-1 lead before halftime.
In the second half, India nearly equalized through Hardik Singh, who narrowly missed a rebound off a Harmanpreet penalty corner. Sukhjeet Singh eventually equalized, deflecting another Harmanpreet penalty corner into the net. The third quarter saw both teams play cautiously, avoiding aggressive moves.
The final quarter started with a critical block by Sanjay, keeping India in contention. However, Germany dominated, with Miltkau scoring six minutes before the final whistle. India substituted PR Sreejesh for an extra attacker, managing a high-pressure penalty corner situation but failing to score. Sukhjeet Singh and Shamsher Singh missed crucial chances in the final minute, preventing a penalty shootout and sealing India’s fate in the semi-final.
India’s semi-final performance was hindered by the absence of defender Amit Rohidas, who was suspended for a match due to an offense in the previous game against Great Britain.
India previously defeated Spain 3-0 in the group stage of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, a match highlighted by a brace from Rupinder Pal Singh and a goal from Simranjeet Singh. They aim to replicate their success in the upcoming bronze medal match at the Paris 2024 Olympics, scheduled for Friday at the Yves-du-Manoir Stadium.
