Tokyo 2020: Belgium thrash India 5-2 in men's hockey semis, bronze medal hopes still alive

Others | Tuesday | 3rd August, 2021

The Indian men's hockey team lost 2-5 to world champions Belgium in the semi-finals of the Tokyo Olympic Games after conceding three goals within the last 11 minutes.

The Indian team reached the semi-finals of the Olympics after 49 years and will now take on the team that will lose the second semi-final between Australia and Germany for the bronze medal.

Harmanpreet Singh (7th) and Mandeep Singh (8th) scored for India while Aleksandr Hendrix (19th, 49th and 53rd) scored three goals for Belgium while Loic Fanny Lypert (2nd) and John John Dohmann (60th) scored. ) scored a goal.

By half time both the teams were tied at 2-2. India were leading 2-1 at one point in this match. After this the Belgium team scored four more goals. Belgium scored three goals in the fourth quarter. It has been a tough time for the Indian hockey team to face Belgium in the Olympics in recent years. Belgium defeated India 3–0 at the 2012 London Olympics and 3–1 at the 2016 Rio Olympics. In London, the two teams met in the pool stage. At the same time in Rio, both of them had faced in the quarter finals.