Antwerp, June 22: The Indian women’s hockey team went down 0-2 to Belgium to suffer its sixth successive defeat in the European leg of the FIH Pro League and inch closer to relegation here on Sunday.
After two goalless quarters, Belgium scored twice in quick succession in the third quarter to win the reverse fixture a day after a 5-1 mauling of the beleaguered Indian side.
Ambre Ballenghie broke the deadlock in the 40th minute of the game and Lien Hillewaert struck the team’s second goal in the 43rd minute.
The result has seen India drop to the ninth and last spot on the table with 10 points from their 14 matches.
On the other hand, this win ensured Belgium remained in the third place behind Netherlands and Argentina who are in the first and second position respectively.
After Saturday’s debacle, India began aggressively with a clear intent to overcome the disappointment of the previous loss. They tried to find space backed by good pace as India built on a good momentum.
India even won a penalty corner early in the quarter but could not convert.
Meanwhile, with six minutes left for the first hooter, a defensive error gave Belgium their first PC of the match. A slow attempt by the hosts eventually led to the umpire awarding a penalty stroke.
But a good video referral by India showed that it was Jyoti’s stick, and the video umpire ruled it as a long corner.
The second quarter witnessed some brave surge by Indian attackers, moving forward with pace and vigour. Skipper Salima Tete led the charge as she took a couple of shots on goal herself but Belgian defence was resurgent.
At half-time, India had two PCs while Belgium had one, and 10 circle entries as opposed to India’s eight. It was an evenly played out match until the half-time break.
In the third quarter, India seemed to lose the plot. Though they began optimistically with a PC being awarded to them, India couldn’t execute.
But Belgium made no such mistake when they won a PC in the following minutes.
Ballengien took the shot from the left which was deflected by India goalie Savita. But the ball rebounded and was perfectly lofted into the post. India responded quickly with a PC but failed to equalise.
Belgium came back to pump another one into India’s post through a PC. They played a similar variation, sending the ball to the left and Hillewaert was perfectly positioned to get the right deflection with no Indian defender posing a threat.
Conceding two quick goals put India under the pump in the final quarter.
Staring at relegation with just two wins in the entire season, India had their task cut out. But there was no respite in the fourth quarter either.
Deepika and Jyoti traded chances in this quarter, trying to find India a goal. They remained goalless despite Neha, Salima, Navneet and Rutuja being in the right places, pushing for that much-needed strike.
India made 22 circle penetrations in the game, almost the same as Belgium, but had no luck in conversion.
India will desperately look for back-to-back wins against China next weekend to avoid relegation. (PTI)
