A lookback at Indian men's hockey team's win over Great Britain at Tokyo Olympics 2020

The Indian men’s hockey team entered the Olympic semi-finals for the first time in 41 years at the Tokyo Olympics.

India will be hoping for a repeat of the Tokyo Olympics 2020 quarter-finals, as they take on Great Britain at the same stage at Paris 2024.

On that fateful evening of August 1, 2021, India secured a 3-1 victory over Great Britain, entering the semi-finals of the Olympics for the first time since they had secured gold at the Moscow 1980 Games. Eventually, India ended the 41-year-long medal drought too, winning the bronze medal by defeating Germany 5-4.

At the current edition in Paris, India started slow with narrow victories against lower-ranked teams like New Zealand and Ireland, apart from a draw against Argentina. The team were struggling to score field goals and were being overly-dependent on Harmanpreet Singh for set-piece goals. They struggled to maintain the tempo and intensity throughout the match.

However, India picked themselves up in the clash with World No. 1 Belgium, going down fighting 1-2. The Indian team then defeated Australia 3-2, marking their first victory against the Kookaburras at the Olympics in 52 years.

World No. 2 Great Britain came into the tournament in great form. However, they have seen some fluctuations since they arrived in Paris. They started emphatically, defeating Spain 4-0. However, they survived a major scare against lower-ranked South Africa in the next match, scoring an equalizer late in the fourth quarter.

They then drew 2-2 against the Netherlands, before huffing and puffing to a 2-1 victory against lower-ranked France. In a crucial clash with Germany, they lost 1-2, thereby finishing third in the group.

While Great Britain are vastly improved since their performances at Tokyo, with their defence now among the best in the world, their recent form might encourage India. This is a golden chance for India to qualify for the semi-finals.

Looking back at Tokyo Olympics 2020 Quarter-final: India vs Great Britain

India came into the quarter-finals high on confidence, finishing second in the group. Although they had suffered a potentially demoralizing 1-7 loss against Australia, they had defeated the likes of Argentina, Spain, New Zealand and hosts Japan comfortably.

Great Britain, meanwhile, had finished third in their pool. They started with convincing wins against South Africa and Canada, but were thumped 1-5 by Germany. They, then, had identical 2-2 draws against the Netherlands and Belgium.

The head-to-head record showed that there was nothing to separate the two teams in the eight matches played at the Olympics. India, though, on form, entered the match as marginal favourites and managed to eventually live by that tag.

It was Great Britain, who started well, as they were rewarded with a penalty corner in the third minute itself. Fortunately for India, the danger was thwarted.

The most successful hockey team at the Olympics settled down soon and then took the lead in the 7th minute. Simranjeet Singh dispossessed one of the defenders, right outside the Great Britain ‘D’ and passed it to Dilpreet Singh, who made no mistake in breaking the deadlock.

Goalkeeper PR Sreejesh made some exceptional saves right at the end of the first quarter as India went into the break, holding onto the narrow lead.

The eight-time Olympic gold medalists didn’t allow their opponents to settle down. The fans had barely settled down for the start of the second quarter, as Hardik Singh intercepted a pass and passed it to an unmarked Gurjant Singh, who was waiting in the Great Britain circle. Gurjant calmly pushed the ball through the legs of goalkeeper Oliver Payne, as India doubled their lead.

The scoreboard remained unchanged at the end of the second quarter. Great Britain came out all guns blazing in the second half. India dropped back and tried to defend the lead, which eventually proved costly, as Great Britain got four back-to-back penalty corners in the dying seconds of the third quarter. Sam Ward converted the last one, setting up the match for a blockbuster finish.

The waves of attacks kept coming in the last quarter and Great Britain got three more penalty corners. Goalkeeper Sreejesh, however, was a wall in front of the goal, as he pulled off many crucial saves.

India put the game to bed as, against the run of play, they scored their third goal in the 57th minute. Hardik got an opportunity to shoot after a counter-attack was launched by the team. Oliver Payne made a save, but the rebound made its way back to the midfielder, who managed to beat the goalkeeper this time and send the ball in.

As the final hooter was heard and the scoreline read 3-1 in favour of India, the players as well as a billion Indian fans went into delirium. Tears of joy were seen everywhere, as a wait spanning more than four decades had ended.

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