Paris Olympics 2024: India Defeat Great Britain In Penalty Shootout Thriller; Storms Into Men's Hockey Semifinals

PARIS: India edged past Great Britain 4-2 in the penalty shootout to reach the semi-finals of the men's hockey event on Sunday.

This thrilling contest ended in a 1-1 stalemate after normal time as India played with 10 men for most of 3 quarters as Amit Rohidas was shown a red card.

Indian goalkeeper PR Sreejesh emerged as the hero in the penalties as he made a match winning save to deny Philip Roper from the spot as Rajkumar Pal scored the decisive goal to seal the deal.

By doing so, the Indian men's hockey team have made it to the final 4 for the second time in a row at the Olympics.

Great Britain started-off the match aggressively as they exerted tremendous pressure on the Indians. Despite relentless pressure, the Indian defence showed resilience as they soaked in the pressure and stood still.

Sreejesh pulled off an incredible save from Samuel Ward in the 11th minute to prevent the Brits from taking the lead.

The first quarter ended with India launching a counter-offensive in the final few minutes as they earned three penalty corners in a row but they were all saved by Great Britain.

The second quarter was when all the drama unfolded.

The action started with Sreejesh making a vital save after a mistake in midfield gave Great Britain the ball, which they got into the Indian circle.

The match witnessed a major turning in the 17th minute as Amit Rohidas was given a straight red-card. The Indian defender was trying to run with the ball and was being challenged by Calnan from behind.

However, the Indian defender's stick was in an awkward position and hit Calnan on the head. After thoroughly discussing the matter, the refs showed a straight red card to Rohidas.

Despite being down by 1 man, India managed to take the lead against the run of play. Skipper Harmanpreet converted the PC as he netted home the opener in the 22nd minute. 

Trailing 1-0, Great Britain would pile on the pressure but India remained defiant in front of their goal.

However, the deadlock was breached in the latter stages as Lee Morton scored in the 27th minute to level the scores at 1-1 going into half-time.

Great Britain looked to be in complete control from the get-go in the third quarter as Sreejesh had to make a match-saving stop in the 32nd minute to deny Rupert Shipperly.

India started slowly but stepped up their intensity in the 4th quarter as they looked to attack the Great Britain circle. 

India's solid performance in defence took the match to the penalty shootout to decide the contest. They will now face either Argentina or Germany in the semi-finals.

ALSO READ: Paris Olympics 2024: Nishant Dev Shell-Shocked After Quarterfinal Loss, Judges Accused Of 'Unfair Verdict'

ALSO WATCH: