Men's Hockey Team Exits World Cup After Thrilling Penalty Shootout Defeat Against Belgium

• by Akanksha Mishra
• 2026-08-29 15:51:00

The Indian men's hockey team's campaign at the FIH World Cup concluded in heartbreaking fashion on Friday at the Belfius Hockey Arena. After seeing their direct medal ambitions dashed earlier in the tournament, Team India squared off against Belgium in a high-stakes classification fixture. Following a pulsating 3-3 deadlock at regulation time, the match was decided by a tense penalty shootout, where Belgium edged past India 4-3 to seal the contest.

Fast Start and Early Drama in the First Quarter

India initiated the match with aggressive intent, catching the Belgian defense off-guard early on. Forward Abhishek struck the opening goal in the 6th minute, handing India a crucial early lead. However, momentum shifted briefly when Indian captain Harmanpreet Singh was handed a yellow card in the 11th minute due to a technical field-substitution infringement, forcing him to spend five minutes on the sidelines. Despite conceding multiple penalty corners during the opening quarter, the Indian defense and goalkeeper successfully held off Belgium's scoring attempts.

Belgium Counterattacks Before Harmanpreet Leveler

Belgium seized control in the second quarter, turning the game around with two rapid goals in the span of two minutes. Romain Duvekot equalized in the 22nd minute, immediately followed by Hugo Labouchere, who capitalized on a penalty corner drag-flick in the 23rd minute to put Belgium ahead.

Trailing into the second half, captain Harmanpreet Singh mounted a stellar comeback for India just one minute into the third quarter, executing a clean drag-flick to tie the score at 2-2. As the match approached its dramatic conclusion, Nicholas de Kerpel put Belgium ahead in the 47th minute. Refusing to surrender, India struck back in the dying seconds, with Harmanpreet converting another precise penalty corner with just 20 seconds remaining on the clock to lock the score at 3-3.

Dramatic Penalty Shootout Seals 8th Place Finish

With regulation time failing to separate the two sides, the fixture proceeded to a nerve-wracking penalty shootout. Belgian goalkeeper Vansh emerged as the match-winner, making crucial saves to deny Indian shooters. Although Shilanand Lakra, Dilpreet Singh, and Abhishek successfully converted their attempts to keep India's hopes alive, Belgium managed to sneak past with a 4-3 shootout victory following decisive conversions and a crucial penalty stroke by Hendrix. With this narrow defeat, India wrapped up their World Cup campaign with an eighth-place finish, displaying immense grit throughout a challenging tournament.

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