Lausanne, Switzerland: The Bhubaneswar leg of the FIH Hockey Pro League concluded in thrilling fashion, with India’s women’s team securing a dramatic shootout victory over the Netherlands, giving home fans plenty to celebrate.
Despite the setback, the Netherlands remain two points clear at the top of the women’s standings, with just three points separating the next four teams as the competition heads into a three-month break.
Meanwhile, in the men’s tournament, India overcame England, while Germany defeated Ireland on Tuesday, leaving the standings wide open at the halfway stage. England and Belgium currently share the top spot, but with only four points separating them from seventh place, the race for the title remains intense.
The FIH Hockey Pro League resumes in Valencia and Amsterdam on June 7.
Germany Overcome Resilient Ireland in 4-2 Victory
Germany battled back twice to secure a hard-fought 4-2 win over a determined Ireland, keeping themselves firmly in title contention.
Despite dominating possession early on, the Germans struggled to break through in the attacking third. Irish goalkeeper Jamie Carr made key saves before Jeremy Duncan’s brilliant baseline pass set up Matthew Nelson for a 14th-minute opener.
Germany responded in the 21st minute through Erik Kleinlein’s first international goal, but Ireland quickly regained the lead as Ben Nelson tapped in from open play five minutes later. Thies Prinz then restored parity with a well-taken penalty corner deflection.
With the scores locked at 2-2, Ireland had a numerical advantage in the third quarter following a German yellow card but failed to capitalize. Germany seized control in the 49th minute when Malte Hellwig smashed home a penalty corner rebound. Hellwig then sealed the victory with a penalty stroke in the 57th minute, keeping Germany in the thick of the title race.
