Harmanpreet hits two goals to help India win against Australia
Harmanpreet Singh’s brace and another masterpiece in goalkeeping helped India defeat Australia 3-2 in their final group game, advancing to the quarterfinals on Friday, August 2.
India also ended a 52-year Olympic drought by defeating Australia, with the Indian squad performing admirably. Abhishek gave India the advantage in the 12th minute, which Harmanpreet extended inside a minute as Sreejesh held off the Australian assaults.
The Indian captain would then score his third goal early in the third quarter, as Australia rallied through Blake Govers in the end to set up an exciting finish in Paris.
Also read: Paris Olympics: PV Sindhu bows out after tough loss to Bing Jiao
India rebounds from defeat against Belgium
This was India’s eighth encounter against Australia this year, with the Aussies winning the previous seven. India was eager to rebound from their defeat to Belgium and had began the game on the front foot.
How things unfolded for India?
India began the first quarter on the offensive, easily penetrating the Australian defense. Shamsher Singh forced Andrew Charter to make a stop in the third minute as the Australian slowly began to deal with the Indian attack. They would mount a counterattack, with Thomas Craig forcing Sreejesh to react and make a save. Jake Whetton nearly opened the scoring in the seventh minute.
India pressed hard and held possession well. Abhishek scored the first goal for the Men in Blue in the 12th minute, which was another great sign for the team. India extended their lead in the next minute when skipper Harmanpreet scored a penalty corner.
Australia equalized in the 25th minute when Craig tapped in to beat Indian goalkeeper S Sreejesh. India led 2-1 at halftime.
Coming into the second half, the Indians maintained their effort. Harmanpreet converted a penalty shot in the 32nd minute to make it 3-1 before Australia threatened and equalized in the 55th minute through Govers Blake.
Australia earned a penalty corner after a fantastic play, and Blake Govers cut the score to 3-2 with 5 minutes remaining. The pressure was on, as Australia had the Indian player pinned in their own half.
Australia would elect to remove Charter and use a flying goalkeeper in the final 90 seconds of the game because they held possession. In the final seconds, Australia received the ball in the D, and Sreejesh rushed out to save the shot. There was a referral, but it was in vain, since India finished second in their campaign.
