Indian eves miss bronze with heartbreak defeat

From finishing 12th in Rio to 4th in Tokyo, the Indian women's hockey team made a historic leap that will surely inspire a generation.

TOKYO: There was no fairy-tale ending for the scintillating run by the Indian women's hockey team as its dream of winning a bronze medal in its maiden entry into the medal round came crashing down at the Tokyo Olympic Games on Friday.

India, the surprise semifinalists in Tokyo, went down 3-4 to Great Britain in the bronze-medal playoff at the Oi Hockey Stadium. India made a brilliant fight-back against a team that won the gold medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics, coming back from a two-goal deficit to take the lead but in the end, the British were lucky to escape to victory as the Indians wasted a number of chances.

The unheralded Indians, who finished 12th and last in Rio five years ago, made an unexpected run into the medal round, winning two matches and beating world No. 2 Australia in the quarterfinals. They lost to the higher-rated Argentina and went down narrowly to Great Britain, but came out with heads held high as Rani Rampal's team played with determination and nearly upset the order in a competition that they entered as the ninth-ranked team in the world.

From finishing 12th and last in the Rio Olympic Games in 2016 to fourth in Tokyo, the Indian women's hockey team made a historic leap that will surely inspire a generation of women hockey players in the country.

On Friday, India came up with another brilliant performance, proving that their entry into the semifinals was no flash in the pan.

The Indians played their hearts out, fought back from a two-goal deficit to take the lead by scoring three goals in four minutes only to see Great Britain come back in the third and fourth quarters to emerge winner and claim the bronze medal, their third medal in three Olympic Games starting from London 2012.

Gurjit Kaur's (25th min, 26th min) brace of goals and a superb field goal by Vandana Katariya (29th min) went in vain as Great Britain struck through Elen Rayer (16th min), Sarah Robertson (24th min), Hottie Webb Pearne (35th min) and Grace Balsdon (48th min) to seal the victory.

It was heartbreak for Rani Rampal's team as two cards (a yellow and green) in the second half meant India played at least seven minutes with 10 players on the field and that turned the momentum into Great Britain's favour.

The Indian women may have lost the match but they were not vanquished as they leave Tokyo with heads held high after making an unbelievable run into the semis when not many had given them a chance of even reaching the quarters.

India thus equalled its best-ever finish in the 1980 Moscow Olympics when women's hockey made its debut. IANS

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