Tokyo Olympics 2020: 'What an amazing opponent', Great Britain laud India for valiant effort in bronze playoff

The India women’s hockey team, led by Rani Rampal, put up an inspired performance in the bronze medal match against Great Britain on Friday, but still fell short of an elusive Olympic medal, losing by a narrow margin of 3-4.

The women’s team, coached by Sjoerd Marijne, exceeded all expectations, bouncing back in the campaign after three consecutive defeats at the start to reach the semi-finals, where they eventually lost 1-2 to Argentina.

Against Great Britain, the Indians conceded two early goals to fall behind in the game but bounced back to score three goals in five minutes (Gurjit Kaur 25th and 26th) and Vandana Katariya (29th).

This turned fortunes in India’s favour, albeit narrowly with a 3-2 lead. However, their lead was short-lived with Great Britain skipper Hollie Pearne-Webb (35th minute) and Grace Baldson (48th) finding the net to seal that bronze-medal winning victory.

While the sporting fraternity across India congratulated the women’s team’s valiant effort, there was praise even from the opponents. Great Britain’s hockey handle on Twitter hailed the Indians’ efforts while wishing them best for the future. Not to forget post the game, the Brits consoled Indian players as well on the turf. It was a sight to behold and the visuals reflected of the Olympic spirit.

“What an amazing game, what an amazing opponent. @TheHockeyIndia you’ve done something special at #Tokyo2020 - the next few years look very bright,” read the tweet.

On Thursday, the Indian men’s hockey team had clinched bronze after beating Germany in the playoff. That was their first medal at the Games in 41 years.

So far, India have on two silver medals and three bronze medals, and lie at 65th position in the overall medals tally. Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu and wrestler Ravi Dahiya clinched silver while shuttler PV Sindhu, boxer Lovlina Borgohain and the India men’s hockey team were the bronze medallist of Tokyo 2020.