Following two consecutive losses, the Indian men's hockey squad finally broke through on Wednesday to beat Australia in the third Test. By clinching this thriller at Mate Stadium, India ended a bleak 12-game winless run against the world No.1. The narrow 4-3 victory is a major milestone, ending a six-year drought against their rivals. This represents India's 13th overall win in 65 matches against Australia, with their previous regulation victory occurring way back in 2016 during a test match in Australia where they won 3-2.
This significant win keeps the five-match series competitive, although Australia still leads 2-1. The match ended in high drama, as the final three minutes saw three goals fly in, with India ultimately emerging victorious. The action continues this weekend, with the fourth game scheduled for Saturday and the final wrap-up on Sunday.
The winning goal was orchestrated by Mandeep Singh, who set up Akashdeep Singh to score the clincher with just 54 seconds left on the clock. India's other goals came from captain Harmanpreet Singh at the 12-minute mark, Abhishek in the 47th, and Shamsher Singh in the 57th. Australia responded with goals from Jack Welch (25'), Aran Zalewski (32'), and Nathan Ephraums (59').
Both sides started cautiously, focusing on solid defensive structures while waiting for a chance to launch a counter-attack. Australia nearly opened the scoring early, but goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathak made some critical saves to keep them at bay. India eventually took the lead in the 12th minute when Harmanpreet converted a penalty corner, opting for precision over power.
Shortly after, P R Sreejesh showed incredible reflexes with a triple save during a penalty corner, with Surender Kumar also helping to keep the ball out. However, Australia leveled the score in the 25th minute through Jack Welch, who netted his third goal of the series. The Australians kept the pressure on after halftime, earning consecutive penalty corners, though they couldn't convert them into goals.
At the start of the third quarter, Zalewski put Australia ahead with a clinical penalty corner. India didn't panic, however, and managed to earn their own penalty corner early in the final quarter, which Abhishek turned into a goal from close range. Then, with only four minutes remaining, India earned another penalty corner; while Jugraj Singh's drag flick didn't go in, Shamsher was quick to react to the rebound and score India's third.
The closing stages were incredibly tense. Australia's Ephraums managed to equalize via a penalty corner in the 59th minute, but the joy was short-lived as Akashdeep scored in the final minute, securing a vital and morale-boosting victory for India.