The Indian junior hockey squad encountered its first defeat at the Sultan of Johor Cup by losing 2-4 to Australia in a pool stage match in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, at Taman Daya Hockey Stadium. This was the team’s first defeat after a strong start in the tournament where they scored two wins and one draw in their preceding three games.​

The captain Rohit was the first one to score in the 22nd minute, whereas Arshdeep Singh scored a goal at the last moment in the 60th minute. But the Australians were unstoppable and they got back with four goals by Oscar Sproule (39th and 42nd minutes), Andrew Patrick (40th minute), and their captain Dylan Downey (51st minute).​

The First Half in a Nutshell

The first quarter held great expectation as the team dominated most of the play after overcoming some early pressure. A very early but crucial save by Prince Deep Singh prevented Australia from getting an early lead. After that incident, the team looked very confident and kept on attacking.​

The situation improved in the second quarter when they got their first penalty corner in the 17th minute. But Anmol Ekka was not able to convert as his shot went over the post with too much power behind it.

But just five minutes later came the breakthrough moment:

• The team earned another penalty corner in the 22nd minute​
• Captain Rohit stepped up and converted it with a simple low strike​
• This put them ahead 1-0 going into halftime​

Amir Ali almost made it 2-0 in the 25th minute after a great solo run down the left side, but the Australian keeper managed to keep the shot out.​

Australia Fought Back Hard

In the third quarter, the scenario changed entirely as Australia netted three goals in quick succession that reversed the situation completely. The first one was netted by Oscar Sproule in the 39th minute when his mates set him up perfectly at the far post for a stress-free finish.​

A minute after that, Australia took the lead when Andrew Patrick capitalized on a deflection from a penalty corner and scored. Then Sproule added to his tally with a 42nd-minute powerful backhand shot that raised the score to 3-1.​

The fourth quarter saw more woes when Dylan Downey flicked in the fifth penalty corner that Australia won in the 51st minute. The side tried to retaliate with a penalty corner opportunity in the 49th minute, but Rohit’s shot went off target.

Late Push Comes Up Short

Just a second before the match ended, Arshdeep Singh executed a good deflection that hit the net and got one back for the team. But by that time, it was too late to alter the result. The score at the end was 2-4.​

After this match, the team was relegated to the second spot on the points table with seven points from four games (two wins, one draw, one loss). Australia climbed to the top with 10 points from 4 matches. You can get more updates and analyses of such games on Khelofun, which brings you all the action straight from the major hockey tournaments happening around the world.​

What This Means Moving Forward

The loss put the team in a situation to regroup very quickly for their next encounter with Malaysia in order to maintain their chances of making it to the final. They had to recover quickly since every point was vital at this moment of the tournament.​

The team had proved their ability to play at this level by their previous shows but the current match was a little victory for the hockey side who still had weaknesses to overcome. The quick succession of those three goals just demonstrated how quick the hockey match momentum could change.​

The loss pointed out the criticality of penalty corners conversion since the team had lost some good chances and Australia scored from every chance they got. For the fans who were following the tournament on platforms like Kheloexch, this match served as a clear demonstration of why every moment is so important at this level of the competition. 

Team Performance Perspective

The early save by Prince Deep Singh that kept the score even was credited to him. The defense was primarily solid in the first half but was eventually broken up during the vital third quarter. The team went on to create chances through the likes of Amir Ali and demonstrated that they were capable of being a threat to Australia’s goal. 

After the loss against Malaysia in the last pool match, the team ultimately made it to the final. This was a sign of their ability to bounce back from defeats and their endeavor to claim recognition among the best teams of the tournament by the virtue of their performance.