Thursday, Feb 28, 2002
Thursday, Feb 28, 2002 |
| Sport | ||
|
News:
Front Page |
National |
Southern States |
Other States |
International |
Opinion |
Business |
Sport |
Miscellaneous |
Advts: Classifieds | Employment | Obituary | Sport
-
Hockey
Malaysian skipper Mirnawan Nawawi (right) is ecstatic after scoring his team's third goal off Chua Boon Huat's pass against India in the World Cup in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday. - Photo: Vino John
Holland 5 -- Belgium 1
KUALA LUMPUR, FEB. 27. Weird visions of Willesden, 1986, where India finished last flashed through the mind, not inexplicably perhaps, as the team slid into a valley of despair despite a brief fightback late in the second half to go down to Malaysia in Pool B of the hockey World Cup at Bukit Jalil on Wednesday. What would probably have been the worst defeat at the hands of the home team in a world level competition was somewhat mitigated by two second half goals. A draw was on the cards when India, pulling back from 0-3 to 2-3, earned a stroke. But to its dismay skipper Baljit Singh Dhillon flunked with eight minutes remaining for the hooter. Dramatic in ways more than one on a day, which saw Spain lower the colours of the mighty Germany by the odd goal in five in a Pool A encounter, India suffered the humiliation of a second defeat in three matches with only a solitary point obtained against Japan on the opening day. On a grey afternoon when a cloud burst kept the players cooling their heels for about 40 minutes with Malaysia sitting pretty on a 2-0 lead, the Indians needed a win to force their way for a place in the last four. At the moment, only a divine dispensation which chief coach Cedric D'Souza is fond of invoking, can help the squad. The Indians displayed none of their known virtues. There was very little adeptness, the projected athleticism, or even the aesthetic touches that distinguish them from the rest. Pedestrian for the major part and not looking motivated enough to do anything constructive despite visible signs of Malaysia moving into spells of ascendancy, the Indians were down within minutes from the push off. Looking for openings and fashioning attacks in bursts, the Malaysians were playing to a plan; to bewilder the defence by long hits and convert them through deflection. Shankar Shanmugam did precisely that guiding the ball from Chua Boon Huat into the boards leaving Jude Menezes flummoxed. Shifting pressure at this point would have had a salutary effect on the rival defence. But the frontline was anything but cohesive, what with skipper Dhillon in the poorest of form in his career, and Dhanraj Pillay closely marked. The equaliser, however, appeared to have surfaced immediately. But Welsh umpire, Steve Graham, did not think so. As Dhanraj deflected a free hit by Baljit Singh Saini and exploded in joy everyone thought a goal had been scored. Graham, perhaps unsighted, consulted his colleague, Jamson Hamish, and ruled against. But the fact that there was a deflection cannot be easily disputed. If it had been off a defender and not off Dhanraj then a corner would have to be ruled. Apparently Graham was convinced there was no touch to Saini's free-hit. Instead of building up an attack the Indians allowed more than sufficient space for the Malaysians to carry out their breakaway moves. A faulty clearance by Dilip Tirkey ended in one such raid and from the skirmish that ensued in front of the goal, Kavin Raj Kalikavandan flicked in. Heavy rain at this point sent players scurrying for cover. When play resumed India brought in Devesh Chauhan for Jude Menezes. But that did not in anyway alter Malaysia stretching the lead through a charming deflection by Mirnawan Nawawi, the icon of Malaysian hockey, off a Chua Boon Huat pass. Earlier, India's Baljit Saini earned an yellow card for a rough tackle on Chairl Anwar. Three goals without a reply was a recipe for disaster. And the embarrassment for the huge Indian crowd can well be imagined at this point. For more than a quarter of an hour there was no hint of India doing anything to force the pace and constrict the margin. At one point the Malaysians luxuriated in the lead, passing the ball among themselves. One former coach counted 17 being allowed to be taken without interception by the India. Malaysia did pay the penalty for this complacency. A quick surge by Baljit Singh, which has become a rarity in this event, put Daljit near the target who found the net. Buoyed by this, the Indians began to believe that a comeback after all was within the realm of possibility. Two penalty corners in succession heightened pressure at the Malaysian end. From a rebound melee, Prabhjot Singh slotted the second goal and India had more than a quarter of an hour to neutralise the lead and even go for a win. One more penalty corner ended with defender Mainderjit Singh coming in the way of Tirkey's shot and umpire Jamson of England showed the spot even as the Malaysians remonstrated. But much to everyone's chagrin Dhillon needlessly hurried his shot which hit goal-keeper Roslan's pads and curled away. And thus evaporated India's hope for a semifinal berth. Spain conquers Germany If India's defeat could be perceived as disastrous then the effect of Spain conquering Germany on German supporters can well be imagined. There was nothing flamboyant about the Spaniards approach, which was as cool and calibrated as that of the Germans. The hero of the team was the young Eduard Tubau, who scored two. Spain went ahead 3-0 after the consistent Xavier Ribas hit in a penalty corner. Germany's response came too late, in the last two minutes. Bjorn Michel struck first and Oliver Domke in the final minute restored some prestige to the verdict. Spain is now on par with defending champion the Netherlands and former champion Pakistan with nine points from three matches. Beating off a spirited challenge, Pakistan had to utilise Shahbaz Ahmed's experience to get into lead in the second half. Just before the finish Khalid Saleem hoisted the second goal. Easy for the Dutch The Netherlands had a serene passage ahead with a third win in as many matches beating Belgium by a very comfortable margin in the morning. After a stressful encounter against Argentina the other night, when Teun di Nooijier saved the day, the Dutchmen led 3-0 at half-time and 4-0 before they conceded a goal to Vitali Kholopov. For the Dutch the scorers were Marten Eikelboom, Karel Klaver, and Taeke Taekema (2). Argentina had a taste of victory at last after two hectic matches accounting for South Africa by a huge margin. Jorge Lombi hit twice after Mario Almeida put Argentina ahead. In the last minute, Vila Matias enhanced the lead. Greg Nicol struck for South Africa. Other results: Group B: Australia 5 (Jaime Dwyer, Micheal McCann 2, Craig Victory, Troy Elder) beat Poland 1 (Tomasz Choczaj). Group B: England 7 (Dave Mathews 2, Mark Pearn, Jerome Goudie, Mike Johnson, Tom Bertram, Ben Sharpe) beat Cuba 0. Group B: Korea 3 (Song Tae Seung 2, Lee Jung Seon) beat Japan 0. Thursday's matches: Spain v Netherlands (1-35 p.m.IST), South Africa v New Zealand (3-35 p.m.); Argentina v Pakistan (4-05 p.m. P-2), Belgium v Germany (5-35 p.m.).
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail
News:
Front Page |
National |
Southern States |
Other States |
International |
Opinion |
Business |
Sport |
Miscellaneous |
|
|
|
The Hindu Group: Home | About Us | Copyright | Archives | Contacts | Subscription Group Sites: The Hindu | Business Line | The Sportstar | Frontline | Home |
Copyright © 2002, The
Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of
this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of
The Hindu
|