Bhopal, May 20: India’s U-18 men’s hockey team concluded their four-match series against Australia with a 3-3 draw. The series ended with one win, two draws, and one loss for the Indian team.
On Wednesday, at the Uddhav Das Mehta (Bhai Ji) Central SAI Centre, the Indian team started the match strongly. In the 10th minute, Karan Gautam converted a penalty corner into a goal. Shortly after, in the 14th minute, Ben Siddharth scored a field goal.
However, Australia made a comeback, equalizing the score in the second quarter. Jet Johnstone scored two crucial goals in the 18th and 25th minutes, bringing Australia level by halftime.
In a fiercely contested third quarter, India regained the lead thanks to a field goal from captain Ketan Kushwaha in the 40th minute. Despite their efforts to maintain the lead, Australia equalized again just three minutes before the match ended, with Andrew Foulds scoring in the 57th minute.
Earlier in the day, India’s U-18 women’s team delivered an impressive performance, defeating Australia’s U-18 women’s team 4-1 in the fourth and final match of their series.
Australia initially took the lead in the 8th minute through Aurora Kovosevich, but captain Sweety Kujur equalized for India in the 13th minute. Following this, Diya (25′), Priyanka Minj (44′), and Naushin Naz (50′) scored to secure a commanding victory for the team.
In the series, the Indian women’s team faced a 3-4 defeat in the first match, followed by a 1-4 loss in the second match. They again lost 1-2 to Australia in the third match.
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