Sandeep’s strikes put India in final
S. Thyagarajan
Will meet Malaysia for honours; Pakistan plays New Zealand for third place
IPOH: Sandeep Singh slotted in a brace as India swerved into the final, notwithstanding an unconvincing display, steeped in errors, pushing Pakistan to a 2-1 defeat in the Azlan Shah hockey tournament on Saturday.
This is India’s fifth appearance in the final, and second in succession. It went down to Argentina last year.
India will take on Malaysia in Sunday’s fight for the glittering cup. Malaysia played in the final last in 2007 and had locked horns with India way back in 1985.
Misgivings over a podium finish were buried deep with India garnering eight points from four matches and topping the table.
Amateurish
But neither team managed to transport the much-awaited match beyond the mundane level; in some phases, both looked amateurish in their approach work. Specks of rough play showed up a few times, compelling the umpires to speak to both the captains to keep things under control.
Besides, Sandeep, who was undoubtedly the hero of the encounter, a good chunk of credit should also go to the tenacity displayed by the defenders headed by the tireless tackler, Dilip Tirkey.
In the midfield, Gurbaj on the right and Prabodh on the left worked hard despite slipping into silly solecisms. So was Arjun Halappa. But the presence of veteran Ignace Tirkey lent the half-line a filament of solidity.
Ignace’s creativity
Ignace’s creativity was transparent whenever he was on the field. In fact, India’s first goal late in the first half surfaced out of his beautiful effort. He dodged a host of defenders and set up a crafty pass to Shivendra Singh, whose run-in ended in a penalty corner.
Sandeep essayed a firm shot but the ball struck Fareed Ahmed. Umpire Greenfield had no hesitation in showing the spot and Sandeep flicked it in without any fuss.
But the frontline was unable to put even a flicker of verve into the attack. Shivendra and Prabhjot showed no sense of urgency or control. The latter had the mortification of seeing his reverse flick sail over the post early in the second half.
Equally phlegmatic was Pakistan’s attack, with Shakeel Abbasi being off colour. However, the equaliser surfaced when Saqlain produced a deft deflection off a free hit from Ehshan Ullah.
Np Midway through, India obtained another goal, which turned out to be the match-winner from Sandeep. Thereafter India managed to play out time.
India’s coach Harendra Singh was palpably elated over the outcome and paid a handsome tribute to the dedication and role of Dilip Tirkey whose show in the deep defence was truly commendable.
Shahid Ali Khan, the Pakistani coach, however felt that the umpires had erred in the award of the stroke in the first half and the goal-resulting penalty corner in the second session.
No early success
For all the sparkle it raised in the rival area, Malaysia failed to court success easily. The Kiwi defenders ensured that every threatening move was foiled in the nick of time.
Winger Nabli troubled the Kiwis repeatedly. But the home team courted success only in the early part of the second half when Chua Boon Huat provided the finishing touches to a cross by Amin.
The lead was ephemeral as the Kiwis retaliated and scored through Nicolas Wilson in a goalmouth scrimmage.
The results:India 2 (Sandeep Singh 2) bt Pakistan 1 (Saqlain); Malaysia 1 (Chua Boon Huat) drew with New Zealand 1 (Nicholas Wilson).
Points table (after the league stage): India:4-2-2-nil-9-5-8; Malaysia4-2-1-1-8-7-7; New Zealand4-1-3-0-7-6-6; Pakistan4-1-0-3-8-8-3; Egypt4-0-2-2-4-11-2 (read as team, played, won, drawn, lost, goal for, goals against and points).
Sunday’s matches:Third place:Pakistan v New Zealand (2 p.m.); Final:India v Malaysia (4.30 p.m.).