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The Indian hockey team lost 1-2 to defending champions Belgium in their fourth Group B match at the Paris 2024 Olympics on Thursday, August 1.
Both India and Belgium came into the match having already qualified for the quarterfinals. Abhishek scored the first goal of the game in the second quarter, giving India a 1-0 lead.
The goal from India came in open play which was pleasing for the fans of the team. India did well to keep the Belgian attack away as they closed out the first half maintaining their lead. However, things changed quickly for India in the second half.
In an attempt to keep the lead secure, India might have got overly defensive in the second half. Belgium showed why they are such a dominant force and were quick to bounce back in the game. Thibeau Stokbroekx and John-John Dohmen both scored for Belgium in the third quarter. The match ended with a 2-1 victory to Belgium.
The Indian fans were not too disappointed with the performance given the Indian hockey team gave a great fight in the match. The supporters took to the social media platform X (Twitter) to boost the morale of the side.
"No worries LADS Chin up," wrote a fan on X.
"You made the nation proud guys," another user wrote.
"Indian hockey team is playing The Olympic finals. Never seen our team pushing Belgium so hard. 1-2 defeat to a team who scored 6 against Australia. We are in for a thrilling Olympic ahead," an X user posted.
"India played better than the Aussies against Belgium. They should be proud of their performance as their defense was unbreakable but Belgium got lucky. Hope India will clinch a medal in hockey," another wrote.
"We fought really well Australia got battered by Belgium 5-1 , we gave them a tough fight .Up Next Australia, I am pretty much confident we can defeat them," tweeted another user.
Indian hockey team to face Australia in what will decide opponent for quarterfinals
India started the game against Belgium as number two on the Pool B points table. They still maintain their spot post defeat. The Men in Blue will now up against Australia in their last Pool B encounter on August 2.
India would hope to do well against the mighty Australians, given the latter's deflating 6-2 loss to Belgium recently. The Indian team would want to end the pool stages of the tournament on a high.
A win or loss to Australia will eventually decide where the Indian hockey team finish on the table and who they face in the quarterfinals of the Paris 2024 Olympics. The quarterfinals will be played on August 4.
