India entered the FIH World Cup pool match in Amstelveen knowing that only a two-goal margin could keep their semifinal hopes alive, but a 3-5 loss to Argentina extinguished those chances.
A Rocky Start in Amstelveen
Argentina surged ahead within the opening six minutes, with Tomas Domene, Joaquin Toscani and Nicolas Della Torre finding the net, while India struggled to contain a barrage of penalty corners.
India managed to reply through Sukhjeet Singh, who struck twice, first in the 58th minute with a field goal and later added another, while Hardik Singh converted a penalty stroke in the 59th minute to narrow the deficit.
Among the Indian roster, Harmanpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Yashdeep, Dilpreet Singh, Abhishek and Jarmanpreet Singh featured in the match, but the team could not translate their efforts into a winning result.
The match was marked by a relentless sequence of four consecutive penalty corners for India, highlighting defensive lapses that Argentina exploited throughout.
Argentina's fifth goal came from Lucas Toscani, who struck with a reverse hit in the 53rd minute, sealing a comfortable margin.
Despite the late rally, the Indian side finished fourth in Pool E with zero points after three group games, and now turns its focus toward placement matches.
While India's campaign slides, the Netherlands secured a semifinal berth by defeating England in their own pool encounter, underscoring the competitive landscape of the tournament.