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Wins Over Germany, Netherlands In Pro League 'solid Stepping Stone' Heading Into WC And Asiad: Fulton
India endured a difficult start to the Pro League during the home leg in Rourkela, where they suffered defeats against Belgium and Argentina. Signs of improvement emerged during the Hobart leg. After opening with a 0-2 defeat to Spain, India bounced back to hold hosts Australia to a 2-2 draw. That followed a 1-1 draw against Spain. However, the shootout in both those matches went in the favour of the opposition. The squad regrouped well in the concluding fixture, winning the shootout 3-1 after a fiercely-contested 1-1 draw against Australia.
In Rotterdam, India produced two of their finest results of the campaign, defeating Germany 3-1 and the Netherlands 3-2. Against two of the strongest defensive units in international hockey, India scored nine goals across four matches, with five coming from field play and four from penalty corners. These numbers highlighted an important shift in India's attacking approach, with the side no longer relying solely on its penalty-corner prowess but was consistently creating and converting chances from open play.
