Expectations weren’t shattered even then. India was still in the race to battle for the Bronze. The contention was between India and Great Britain. Speculations were sky-high this time. The whole country was eyeing today’s match, which was scheduled for 7:00 AM, August 6.

Match began, following nationals anthems of both countries. Teams were all prepared to deliver a strong competition to the opponent. Although the start wasn’t very lucky for India, it was at the end of Q2 when team blue gained momentum and scored their first goal. India was under pressure, sticks on hand and aim on the goalpost. The Rio champions, Great Britain, don’t want to lose this time. They are all determined to beat the competitor. And in the end, they secured the third position in Hockey at the 2020 Olympics, beating India 4-3. It was a courageous match though.

Let’s travel to the highlights of today’s match.

Interesting stats

— Great Britain (England) is ranked 4th in the FIH rankings, while India is ninth in the list.

— The Rio Champions have the upper hand, winning two and drawing two of their last four games against India.

— Great Britain won the gold medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, while have won the bronze medal twice previously, in 1992 and 2012.

— India meanwhile has never been on the podium, and this is just their third appearance at the Summer Games.

IND v GBR | Highlights

6:51 AM, Ten minutes to go to witness a historical match.

6:52 AM, Teams are out in the field for the National Anthems. Hearts are beating fast, there is intensity in the player’s eyes. They had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

6:54 AM, Match begins. This is a big opportunity for team India.

7:00 AM, Capt. Rani Rampal and Vandana Katariya are key players for India in this battle for Bronze. GBR is attacking from left to right. The first five minutes are very crucial.

7:02 AM, First PC to Britain. Can India save it?

7:03 AM, India defended it well. Credits to Savita.

7:05 AM, Superb ball from Neha to Rani, but she took a lot of time to enter the circle and attack was wasted out.

7:11 AM, Another PC to Great Britain. The ball is averted and India survived again.

7:16 AM, End of the first quarter. Both teams are 0-0.

7:19 AM, Second quarter begins.

7:22 AM, GOAL!! Elena Rayer earns the first goal to team Britain. GBR leads 1-0.

7:24 AM, India resisted for the first quarter, but it didn’t take much time for GB to take possession in the second quarter. The goal, unfortunately, coming off an Indian stick. The reigning Olympic champions might be more dangerous now.

7:25 AM, PC to GBR. But it struck the side of the goalpost.

7:32 AM, GOAL!! GBR ahead India 2-0. Tomahawk shot and with a player down India relinquished another goal. McCallin makes the cross inside the circle, Robertson hammers it in to double Britain’s lead.

7:33 AM, PC to India. PC converted, and GOAL to team blue. Gurjit Kaur scores a drag-flick – and India pulls one back. Powerful shot, no goalkeeper, even a legend like Hinch has no chance to save this one. Fantastic save.

7:36 AM, India 1-2 Great Britain.

7:37 AM, Salima Tete earned a PC to India. Well done pride of Jharkhand. She moved swiftly inside the circle from the left-hand flank.

7:37 AM, Gurjit Kaur came to rescue. Once again she converted the PC and drew the match to 2-2. Wonderful job!

7:41 AM, GOAL!! Sushila Chanu enters inside the circle, Navneet attempted to put it in, but she missed, approaches Vandana Katariya to put the ball inside from the near post. India leads 3-2.

7:44 AM, A fantastic comeback for team India in the second half. Going from 0-2 down to a 3-2 lead.

7:54 AM, India is still ahead of Great Britain.

7:58 AM, PC to GBR, but saved. Monika defended well. Solid blocking to deny Britain once again on PC.

7:59 AM, Britain won’t let an easy go for India. Excellent ball by Anna Thomas inside the circle, there was no touch inside the circle. Lucky escape for India.

8:01 AM, GOAL!! Britain equalised the game. Both are 3-3 now.

8:03 AM, PC to India. Good job Sharmila to keep the GBR defence at bay. The ball touches McCallin’s. Another chance for India.

8:04 AM, Another PC! saved by Madeline Hinch. India denied scoring.

8:08 AM, The 19-year-old, Salima Tete is concerning Indian defence. India keeping possession. If they secure a goal here, it would put pressure on Britain.

8:25 AM, Grace Balsdon scores a goal. Great Britain leads 4-3.

8:31 AM, India is under pressure. Tension is all over the air.

8:43 AM, India is putting pressure on Great Britain. The last 90 seconds are very crucial.

8:45 AM, India lost the Bronze medal match to Great Britain 3-4. It was an electrifying match that went right down to a medal. But the women team has so much to be proud of. They stood against the Rio Gold Medalist and gave them strong competition. Well done girls! The Country is proud of you.

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