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India vs Germany Hockey LIVE Score: The Indian men’s hockey team will look to bounce back and finish the two-match bilateral series with a victory against Germany on Thursday (24 October). Harmanpreet Singh-led India suffered a 2-0 loss to reigning world champions Germany in the first match of the bilateral series on Wednesday at the Major Dhyan Chand International Stadium in Delhi. It was the first international hockey match in Delhi since 2015.
In the first match, Henrik Mertgens and captain Lukas Windfeder scored the goals for the visitors while Harmanpreet missed a penalty stroke. India also failed to convert any of their Penalty Corners (PCs). However, it has to be noted that a few PCs were also taken by Varun, Amit Rohidas, and Sanjay besides Harmanpreet as the Indian team tries to build a reserve of quality drag-flickers.
Read: Experimental India lose to Germany as international hockey makes low-key return to Delhi
Also, midfielder Rajinder Singh was handed his debut, but the absence of midfielder Hardik Singh due to an injury curtailed India’s creativity and the finishing from the forwards was also not on the mark.
“I think first half was theirs overall but second quarter was ours, in a sense. We got nicely back into it and then the third quarter was a bit even and then, yeah, we missed a few connections up front. We weren’t fluid. Normally we have a bit more goal shots. We are a bit more threatening, but we’ve got another opportunity tomorrow,” India coach Craig Fulton said after the loss.
Read: National Stadium in focus as India take on hockey world champions Germany with an eye on future
On missing the penalty stroke, skipper Harmanpreet said: “It’s part of the game. The goalkeeper was deceived but made a good save. Overall we performed well, the way we managed the ball was good, but defensively we could have done better. We will try to do better in all the departments tomorrow.”
Besides aiming for a series-levelling win, India will also be looking to try out new strategies in the new Olympic cycle, and striker Aditya Arjun Lalage is expected to make his debut in the match.