India score too low for a group win

India failed to finish first in Group D. England trailed the World Cup hosts on goal difference. As a result, the English are assured of a place in the quarter-finals and India is condemned to play an intermediate round. Earlier in the day Malaysia were surprisingly too strong 3-2 for New Zealand. In this match, New Zealander Sam Lane scored the 2500th goal in the World Cup.

India v Wales 4-2
After England’s 4-0 victory over Spain, the Indians knew what to do against Wales, starting in the World Cup. To finish top of the group, India needed to win 8-0 or 7-0, with six of those seven goals having to be field goals.

The last time Wales and India met was at the Commonwealth Games last August. Then India won 4-1. Indians’ biggest victory was in 2018. In the Asian Games, Hong Kong was beaten 26-0.

To the cheers of a packed Kalinga stadium, India started the mission without Hardik Singh. The speedy midfielder picked up the injury in the second group game against England. He trained ahead of the match against Wales, but national coach Graham Reid decided not to take any risks ahead of the tournament.

Attack waves

The attacks follow one another, but it is only eight minutes before half-time that a breach is made in the Welsh defense. The second Indian corner was well executed, but the ball was recovered by Shamsher Singh. He dribbled in the circle and fired a flawless shot: 1-0

Wales have sometimes shown themselves offensively. James Carson probably had the equalizer on the stick. He worked his way through the indian circle, but then failed to hit the ball well, sending his shot wide of the net.

After the break, the first chance was for Wales. After Harmanpreet Singh deliberately played the ball over the back line, according to the referee, Gareth Furlong pushed just wide of the Indian goal.

However, the relief at Kalinga Stadium quickly gave way to joy. A one-two between Akashdeep Singh and Mandeep Singh made it 2-0. Goalkeeper Toby Reynolds-Cotterill had no chance against Akashdeep’s slider from the long corner.

Wales brand

India then increased the pressure, but four penalty corners in the third quarter failed to produce a goal. This goal fell on the other side. Furlong scored Wales’ second corner: 2-1.

After the equalizer, Kalinga Stadium came to a standstill. It was a sensible blow for India, who took another just before the end of that third quarter as Wales equalized. Furlong’s corner, the third for Wales, was first completed by goalkeeper PR Sreejesh. Declarer Jacob Draper was then played and he tossed the ball over Sreejesh into the goal: 2-2.

India quickly regained the lead in the fourth quarter. Wales’ loss of possession around the 23-yard line led to Akashdeep’s second goal. With a hard backhand, he left Reynolds-Cotterill without a chance. With less than a minute on the clock, Harmanpreet determined the final score at 4-2. He took a penalty corner. Harmanpreet had it a bit easier this time than the previous six attempts because just before Wales had taken the keeper to the side for an extra outfield player. The three points were scored, but the result was not enough for the group victory.

Spain – England 0-4
England handed national coach Max Caldas’ Spain the second defeat in three group matches. The English were clearly the best and put it in numbers. It became 4-0 in Bhubaneswar.

England took the lead in the eleventh minute. Spain goalkeeper Adrian Rafi turned the penalty corner, but then failed to properly deal with the ball. With his glove he tapped the ball in the direction of Phil Roper who hit the target with this gift.

Halfway through the second quarter, the score was doubled. The English had to ask for a dismissal for that. David Condon’s goal was disallowed by the referee. The video referee ruled differently after seeing the footage. After a scoreless third quarter, Nicholas Bandurak punished the Spanish defence, after which Liam Ansell put the final score on the board a minute later.

England thank the crowd at Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar after their 4-0 win over Spain. Photo: WorldSportPics/Frank Uijlenbroek

Malaysia – New Zealand 3-2
With two goals, Faizal Saari was the big man on the Malaysian side. The Schaerweijde player opened the scoring after nine minutes in the game against New Zealand and decided the game three minutes before the end by sliding the ball into the net under goalkeeper Leon Hayward.

Four minutes earlier, New Zealand had made it 2-2 after leading 2-0. Sam Lane’s equalizer, playing for Oranje-Rood, was the 2,500th goal in World Cup history. The very first goal of a World Cup was scored on October 15, 1971 by Juan Amat. In Barcelona, ​​the Spaniard immediately scored twice in the pool game against Japan.

New Zealander Sam Lane scored the 2,500th goal in World Cup history against Malaysia. Photo: William Verne