India turned on the heat on Netherlands and won the bronze medal in the World League hockey finals at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International stadium in Raipur. Thirty-three years after they clinched bronze in the Champions Trophy, India won a 15-goal thriller and sealed the third place with a 8-7 scoreline via shoot-out as both teams remained tied on 5-5 after regulation time. Goalkeeper PR Sreejesh was in the thick of action during the nerve wracking shoot-out, bringing about three invaluable saves.
While Birendra Lakra and skipper Sardar Singh scored for the hosts, Billy Bakker and Seve van Ass netted for the Dutch before Manpreet Singh was fouled by goalkeeper Pirmin Blaak. Rupinder Pal Singh stepped up to convert from the spot to send the stadium into a frenzy. India struggled to call the shots in the early stages of the game and the Dutch regularly caught them off guard. Max Caldas' men edged ahead in the 9th minute when Mirco Pruijser scored from a deflection to notch up his third goal of the tournament.
Moments later, it was once again a case of missed opportunities as striker SV Sunil failed to control a long cross from Ramandeep Singh near the edge of the inner circle with only Blaak to beat to draw level. For a side seeking to end their journey on a high, India lacked the penetration as they were made to rue the missed chances before the tide turned.
Dutch midfielder Van Ass put in a decent cross for Niek van der Schoot before the latter pulled off an exquisite reverse flick from inside the `D' to double the lead for the European outfit. Targeting the top of the net, van der Schoot made no mistake as Sreejesh stood stranded.
Down 0-2 and having wasted two penalty-corner opportunities in the first-half, India began exerting considerable pressure on the opponents' backline.
Oz emerge champs
A clinical Australia claimed the coveted World League Finals trophy as they beat a listless Belgium 2-1 in the final. For a side branded aged after their bland performance in the group stage, Australia's turnaround was impressive if not unexpected. Jeremy Hayward knows a thing or two about scoring from an open play. Seizing the initiative, the Australian defender scored from the left edge of the inner circle after the Belgian defence failed to tackle Glenn Turner's cross from the left flank. Reacting immediately to the poor clearing, Hayward dodged past the Belgian defence before unleashing a powerful stroke.
