Already assured of a place in Saturday’s summit clash against Korea, the Indians scored goals almost at will, leaving the Polish players in daze. Besides Mandeep (50th, 51st minutes), drag-flicker Varun Kumar (18th, 25th) also struck twice. Vivek Sagar Prasad (1st), Sumit Kumar (7th), Surender Kumar (19th), Simranjeet Singh (29th), Nilakanta Sharma (36th) and Amit Rohitdas (55th) were the other goal scorers for India.
Five-time champion India, thus, maintained its unbeaten streak in the competition, collecting 13 points from five league matches, with the help of four wins and a draw. With two strikes on Friday, Mandeep (seven) became the highest goal scorer in the tournament, while Varun took his personal tally to five.
It was expected to be a one-sided contest and it turned out to be so as India raced to a 2-0 lead by the seventh minute through Vivek and Sumit’s goals. The second quarter saw India strengthen its attack, with it making space inside the striking circle. In good form, Sumit earned a penalty corner for the victor and it was perfectly converted by Varun.
A minute later, Surender registered his name on the scoresheet by scoring from a penalty corner created by Rohidas. Though India lost forward Shilanand Lakra to a green card in the 24th minute, it secured another penalty corner. Varun was bang on target with a powerful flick, handing his side a commanding 5-0 advantage.
Simranjeet then added to the team’s tally by putting the ball past Polish goalkeeper Mateusz Popiolkowski. With a formidable 6-0 lead at half-time, India continued to dominate after the change of ends. In the 36th minute, it was Nilakanta’s turn to score, after receiving a good pass from Sumit.
Though India managed only one goal in the third quarter, the side made a strong finish in the fourth, scoring three more goals. The Polish goalkeeper, meanwhile, was impressive as he made some brilliant saves to keep Gursahibjit Singh and Simranjeet at bay early in the final quarter.
A powerfully struck Rohidas penalty corner too was well-saved by custodian Popiolkowski. India’s eighth and ninth goals came off skilful displays by Mandeep. He intercepted Michal Raciniewski and took a direct shot for his first goal, while his second was well-assisted by Gurinder Singh.
India’s 10th goal was scored by Rohidas off a penalty corner, which was earned by Surender.
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