Before pushback in Ipoh, Malaysia on Wednesday evening between Malaysia and India, the former came into the match on the back of a massive win against Argentina while the latter, riding on a three-match winless run. The hosts had a packed Sultan Azlan Shah stadium rooting for them as a win would all but guarantee a spot in the final, while the visitors were once again fielding a young side that was struggling to win a game.
But the scorecard after the final whistle read India 5, Malaysia 1.
Finally, the India men’s hockey team had plenty to smile about at the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup as a visibly delighted coach, Sjoerd Marijne, hugged and congratulated his players, who registered their first win in the tournament.
Brilliant all around play
After being beaten by the likes of England, Australia and Argentina, India had to make a point against the hosts on Wednesday. They came into the game requiring a win to stay alive in the competition.
For the most part of this tournament so far India had put in good performances - the young defence did well controlling chances from open play, the midfield and forward line created plenty of chances. It would be fair to say to that the team just played one quarter of bad hockey - that being the third quarter against Australia.
If there was one clear area that required improvement, it was that the midfield and strikers had to step up and deliver goals.
And against Malaysia, they did just that.
Gurjant Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Sumit Kumar and Shilanand Lakra all scored as they were assisted ably by the likes of captain Sardar Singh, Surender Kumar from the midfield, making runs from the deep and leading the circle penetrations into the opponent’s half.
India were looking to score on the counter-attack during the first half as Malaysia came out all guns blazing. Some brilliant defending made sure that the hosts did not get a chance to score a goal or concede a penalty corner with the scoreboard still reading 1-1. India withstood a barrage at the end of the first half.
And then, Lakra drew first blood in the second half as he scored his second goal of the tournament. From then on, India looked irresistible every time they went forward, with Malaysia desperately chasing the game.
Sardar leads the way
Malaysia equalised via penalty corner in the third quarter and look to score a second. However, Sardar decided to take matters into his own hands and rallied his troops to take the tempo of the game a notch up.
Sardar along with the midfield played deep to strengthen the defence as they looked to score on the counter-attack given the space Malaysia created while attacking. The trick worked as India won a penalty corner. They did not convert it but Gurjant smashed the ball into the back of the net on the rebound.
The third goal was exquisite as Sardar ran with the ball after retrieving it. He made a deceptive pass to Ramandeep Singh before while falling to the ground, losing balance. But he found Ramandeep who then set up Sumit, to make it 3-1.
India have made numerous circle entries during the course of the tournament but struggled to convert them into goals. On Wednesday, they made 16 circle entries and scored five.
And just like that, it all finally clicked into place.
Goalkeepers stand tall
Another bright spark in India’s win was the performance of goalkeepers Suraj Karkera and Krishan Pathak. Karkera pulled off some brilliant saves for India as Malaysia were relentless with their attack in the second and quarter.
Karkera was up to the task as he literally flew around to save a few. Pathak too stepped up his game after a poor showing against Australia and Argentina.
Marijne will be happy with such a performance and will hope that they keep this winning spirit alive in the remainder of the tournament. The win gives India a chance to feature in the final provided they win with a big margin against Ireland on Friday and other results go their way.
And based on the evidence on Wednesday, a similar performance against Ireland will ensure the men in blue meet their half of the bargain in that equation.