Indian women eke out 2-2 draw against Belgium men’s hockey team
Indian women’s hockey team held on to a 2-2 draw against Belgium junior men’s team.
SNS | New Delhi | September 12, 2017 1:55 pm
Nikki Pradhan and Vandana Katariya scored a goal each as the Indian women’s hockey team held on to a 2-2 draw against Belgium junior men’s team in a thriller at Antwerp on Monday.
India appeared aggressive since the start of the game as captain Rani earned a penalty corner within first 40 seconds. However, the team couldn’t score a single goal in the first quarter.
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The second quarter saw both sides seeking a goal desperately. Belgium enjoyed more possession that paid off for them as they took the lead through Stan Branicki’s goal in the 19th minute.
Pradhan struck an equaliser for India in the 36th minute. However, Belgium took the lead again in the 43rd minute when Matthieu de Laet scored a wonderful field goal.
Indian women made a comeback in the dying minutes as Vandana Katariya leveled the score 2-2 in the 54th minute.
India will next play Ladies Den Bosch in their third match of the Europe Tour on Thursday.
The nippy Chinese scored goals through Zhong Jiaqi (25’), Zou Meirong (40’), Liang Meiyu (55’) and Gu Bingfeng (60’) to raise their expectation of gold and straight qualification to the Olympics.