The Hindu : Sport / Hockey : Pakistan has the last laugh

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 30, 2004

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Sport - Hockey

Pakistan has the last laugh

PESHAWAR, SEPT. 29. India fought bravely before succumbing 3-2 to Pakistan in the third Test here today.

Trailing by two goals going into the second half, India did well to bounce back with goals in the 48th and 60th minutes through Hari Prasad and Arjun Halappa respectively. However, a Sohail Abbas strike with just three minutes left for the final hooter put paid to India's hopes.

Pakistan, which won the first Test at Karachi and lost the second at Quetta, now leads the series 2-1 with the fourth and final encounter of the Pakistan leg of the series scheduled for Friday at Lahore.

After their dismal performance at Quetta, the Pakistanis pulled up their socks and Mudassar Ali Khan (15th), Shakeel Abbasi (25th) gave them a perfect start.

India, which struggled to gain possession in the first half, looked a completely transformed side after the break as it made a number of forays.

Besides the two goals, which were the result of well-executed moves by the young forwards, India had other chances too but was unlucky to miss out.

The side failed to score from the four penalty corners it earned.

On one occasion, Adam Sinclair, after a good move by Vikram Pillay and Sandeep Michael, hit the ball past Pakistan goalkeeper Salman Haider, only to see it hit the post and come back into play.

Taking control

India forced a penalty corner early on in the contest, but failed to capitalise on the chance to move ahead. That was the only opportunity for the Indians in the first half as Pakistan slowly but steadily took control with the forwards making several dangerous moves.

The hard work almost paid off when the side won its first penalty corner in the 10th minute.

The fans egged on Sohail Abbas when the penalty corner expert got ready to take the shot, but Dilawar Hussain did not stop Rehan Butt's push properly, denying Sohail a chance to get closer to Paul Litjen's 268 goal tally.

The next three minutes saw the home side come close to scoring on two occasions but the opportunities went abegging due to some poor finishing. However, in the 15th minute, Pakistan took the lead through Mudassar's opportunistic goal.

After getting a pass off a counter move, Mudassar rolled the ball inside the circle before hitting a rasping shot that caught goalkeeper Adrian D'Souza off-guard.

Poor judgement

D'Souza, who was impressive in the first two Tests, failed to make proper judgement and let the ball go through his legs much to the delight of the home supporters, who thronged the stadium in large numbers. In the 25th minute, Abbasi made it 2-0 with another field goal.

During this period, India earned two penalty corners but wasted both of them.

Sandeep Singh, the hero of India's win in the second Test, was off target in the first of the two set-pieces in the 24th minute while Halappa hit dangerously three minutes later as the side employed a different variation, hoping to reduce the margin.

India played with more aggression in the second half, forcing the Pakistanis to go on the defensive; this helped the visitors' cause.

Hari Prasad's goal added teeth to the attack as the Indians pressed hard for the equaliser which came at the hour mark through Halappa. — PTI

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