Berlin, June 21 (IANS) The Indian junior men’s hockey team endured a tough start to their campaign in the 4-Nation Tournament, suffering a 1-7 defeat against a dominant German side in their opening match here on Saturday.

Germany started strongly, putting India under pressure early in the game. Nico Kistein (4’) opened the scoring by converting a penalty corner, followed swiftly by a field goal from Alec Von Schwerin (5’), giving the hosts a 2-0 lead within the opening quarter.

The momentum stayed with Germany in the second quarter as they continued to apply attacking pressure. Hasbach Ben (25’) extended their lead with a field goal, ensuring Germany went into halftime with a commanding 3-0 advantage.

The second half offered little respite for the Indian Colts as the hosts kept control of the match. Paul Babic (39’) added another goal to make it 4-0. Despite trailing, India showed signs of resilience in the fourth quarter with forward Sourabh Anand Kushwaha (50’) netting a field goal to reduce the deficit to 4-1.

However, Germany responded immediately, as Hasbach Ben (51’, 54’) struck twice to complete his hat-trick, while Paul Babic (54’) added his second goal of the game to seal a comprehensive 7-1 win for the hosts.

India will look to bounce back when they take on Australia on 22nd June, followed by a clash against Spain on 24th June in the remaining Pool stage fixtures.

The tournament features a round-robin format where each of the four participating teams – India, Germany, Australia, and Spain – will face each other once in the Pool stage. The top two teams at the end of the group matches will qualify for the Final, while the remaining teams will contest the 3rd/4th place playoff.

–IANS

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