Champions Trophy 2016 | Lacklustre India go down to Belgium

After securing a win over hosts Great Britain and a draw over reigning champions Germany, India faced off against bottom-dwellers Belgium in their third match of the tournament. With four points from two matches, India were placed third in the table, behind hosts Great Britain and World Champions Australia. Belgium, on the other hand, lost their opening match against South Korea before playing out an entertaining 4-4 draw against Germany. Belgium needed a win to stay in the hunt for the medal rounds, while India hoped to continue their unbeaten run at the tournament.

Belgium, who are ranked No.5 in the world, almost opened their account in the first minute of the second quarter after Florent van Aubel slid the ball past an onrushing Sreejesh, only to see Kothajit Singh stopping the ball just before it crossed the line. The warning signs were there for India, and it finally turned to a goal in the 25th minute through a penalty corner. After seeing Sreejesh stopping two previous efforts from the penalty corners, India would have hoped for the same from the goalkeeper the third time around, but a slip up from the Keralite allowed the straight flick from Alexander Hendrickx to go into the goal through his legs. The deadlock was broken, and India needed a goal fast to get back into the match. India’s equalizer came just before the end of the quarter with Devindar Walmiki producing a cracker of a shot from inside the shooting circle to slot it into the right corner.

After scoring the goal just before the end of the half, coach Roelant Oltmans would have expected his team to take the momentum into the second half. It went according to plan at least in the initial minutes as India opened up the Belgian defence to win two penalty corners. Raghunath’s flick found the defender at the post, and he pulled it away to keep India at bay. The Red Lions slowly found their groove and cashed in on the opportunity when it came to take the all-important lead. In a move similar to Walmiki’s goal, Jerome Truyens found space in the shooting circle and powered one straight at Sreejesh, who once again allowed the ball to creep under his legs. 

Needing a goal to get back into the match, India pushed forward in the last quarter with SV Sunil utilising his pace on the flanks. But apart from Sunil, India’s attackers looked lethargic and failed to find their touch in the match. Belgium looked the more threatening team in the quarter and won three penalty corners to threaten the Indian defence. India even removed Sreejesh in the last two minutes and played with one more outfield player to find an equaliser, but all their efforts provide to be futile as Belgium held on to win the match 2-1.