In the bronze medal match, India’s men’s team defeated Germany 5-4, ending a 41-year drought for an Olympic medal in hockey. The last time India won a hockey medal was at the 1980 Moscow Olympics, when they won gold. On Thursday, India ended their medal drought by defeating Germany in a stunning comeback victory. Simranjeet Singh scored two goals, while Hardik Singh, Harmanpreet Singh, and Rupinder Pal Singh also contributed to India’s victory.
Timur Oruz scored in the second minute of the first quarter to give Germany an early lead.
In the 17th minute, Simranjeet Singh equalised for India, bringing the score at 1-1. Germany, on the other hand, came roaring back in the second quarter, scoring two more goals to take a 3-1 lead.
Hardik Singh equalised for India, bringing the score to 2-3, and Harmanpreet Singh struck the back of the net once more to bring India level at the end of the second quarter.
Rupinder Pal Singh’s penalty stroke gave India a shocking 4-3 lead in the third quarter, proving to be the most productive for Manpreet Singh’s team.
Things got even better when Simranjeet Singh scored his second goal of the game, giving India a 5-3 advantage heading into the fourth quarter.
In the fourth quarter, Germany pushed hard and converted one of their numerous penalty corners to trail India by one goal.
The Indian players, on the other hand, defended resolutely and held on to their one-goal lead.
With few seconds remaining in the game, Germany was awarded a penalty corner. PR Sreejesh, on the other hand, deflected the ball away from the goal as Indian players jumped for excitement, thus ending the country’s long wait for Olympic hockey gold.
