Bhubaneswar (Odisha)[India], March 19 (ANI): India lost to World No.6 Argentina 1-3 in the shootout after the match ended 2-2 in full time here at the Kalinga Stadium in FIH Pro League 2021/22 match.
The hosts started off aggressively but could not convert their chances into goals as the first two quarters ended 0-0. The Indian team got four penalty corners but failed to convert even a single one while the 2016 Rio Olympics gold medallist got only one penalty which they could not convert. Argentina enjoyed more possession of 52 per cent in comparison to blue stick who had only 48 per cent possession but India had 16 circle penetrations in comparison to Argentina's 5.
The deadlock was finally broken when Gurjant Singh scored the first goal of the match in the third quarter to give India a 1-0 lead. A few minutes later Nicolas Acosta scored for Argentina to make it 1-1.
The fourth quarter started on a positive note for visitors as they got a penalty corner and Lucas Toscani got the final touch to take a 2-1 lead. With less than a minute to go, Mandeep Singh scored the equaliser for India as the match ended 2-2 full-time and went to the shootout.
In the Shootout, Argentina scored in the first opportunity and so did India with Harmanpreet Singh making it 1-1. Indian goalkeeper PR Sreejesh managed to save one but failed to save three while Gurjant and Sukhjeet failed to score and India lost the match 3-1.
India earned a point with this draw and Argentina also got a point for the draw as well as got a bonus point for winning the shootout. With this draw, India are now placed in the second spot of FIH Pro League points table with four wins in seven matches having 13 points in kitty behind the Netherlands. (ANI)