Indian eves lose to Great Britain in the opening match of England tour

ByPress Release, SportsCafe Editor

05/04/2016

In the first game of the 5-match series against Great Britain, the Indian eves lost the opening match 2-0. The Indian team gave their all in search of goals, but could not break down the sturdy English defence. In the end, Ellie Rayar's brace gave the home side a comfortable victory.

The match started at a very rapid pace for India as they won a penalty corner in the 7th minute, but the opportunity went begging as Anuradha mishit a rebound. The Indian girls kept pressing through the 1st quarter as Vandana’s deflected goal was ruled out by the referee, citing dangerous play.

The 2nd quarter too saw the Indian girls press hard as Ritu almost got India the lead, but her shot was saved by the goalkeeper from Great Britain. Great Britain too had a very good opportunity in the 2nd quarter, when they won a penalty corner, but failed to convert the chance. At half-time, the match was nicely poised at 0-0.

In the 3rd quarter, Great Britain began on a speedy note as they scored the opening goal of the match. Britain's No.11 Ellie Rayar opened the scoring in the 8th minute of the quarter. The 3rd quarter was completely dominated by the Great Britain side and luckily for India, they were only one goal behind by the end of the quarter.

The 4th quarter saw the Indian girls trying to make an impact on the match, but that wasn’t to be as Great Britain scored their second goal with 3 minutes remaining on the clock for the match to finish. The second goal too came from the stick of no. 11 Ellie Rayar via a penalty corner.

Overall, It was a tough day on the park for the Indian girls, who lost the match 2-0, but there was no dearth of determination and resolute gameplay from them. They looked a much organized side as they kept pressing through the match and kept the home team on their toes. A strong comeback will be expected from the Indian team in their second match.

India will play their second match of the Test series against Great Britain on May 5, 2016.

Report courtesy: © Hockey India