Indian men's hockey team sweep aside Russia, seal Tokyo spot

We just had to stay patient and they fought very hard,' chief coach Graham Reid said after the match.​ India recovered quickly, regrouped in the second quarter and put on a grand show as they won 7-1 for a 11-3 aggregate to clinch their berth to 2020 Tokyo Olympics. In the end it proved a cakewalk, a result befitting India's ranking as world No. 5. The forwards, led by the seasoned SV Sunil, were in great form as they left the Russian defence that had thwarted them repeatedly on Friday, in tatters. Russia again crowded the defence and looked to capitalise on the counter but India were prepared, prising open the defence with smart passing and hard running.​ India bagged five penalty corners, converting four. Experienced drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh, who had struggled on Friday, was his old self and converted two goals. Amit Rohidas (60+) converted the final penalty corner while Akashdeep slammed home a rebound off the second PC.​ Akashdeep (23, 29), Lalit Upadhyay (14) and Nilakanta Sharma (47) were the other scorers. ​ India earned their first penalty corner in the seventh minute but Harmanpreet Singh could not score. They created pressure but the visitors held on to their lead until the first quarter ended.​ Upadhyay, handed his 100th cap, scored the equaliser when he deflected in a shot by Hardik Singh. Akashdeep then converted a rebound after a flick by Harmanpreet Singh was blocked by the goalkeeper. India made it 3-1 when Akashdeep scored on the stroke of half-time, showing fine skill, running into the circle and slamming home a backhander.​ India were always in control in the second half and Rupinder Pal Singh scored off his first two attempts.​ 'The sequence was not working yesterday. But today, things worked well. It took time for me to get my rhythm back as I was playing a competitive match after some time. When I scored my first goal, I was happy to get my rhythm back,' said Rupinder.​ Reid was happy with his boys as they scored both field goals and on PCs. With the job done, he now has nine months to plan for the Olympics.​ DailyhuntDisclaimer: This story is auto-aggregated by a computer program and has not been created or edited by Dailyhunt. Publisher: Hindustan Timeshttps://ask.fm/herbaazketon

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