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George Pinner may have won the Best Goalkeeper of the Tournament award at the Azlan Shah Cup earlier this year, and may also have been nominated for FIH's Goalkeeper of The Year, but was beaten within five minutes of the starting whistle by a player who hardly has any reputation to write home about.
The scores were level at the end of sixty minutes following an absorbing contest, but the emotions on both ends could not have been more different.
The Chinese players made no effort to hide their joy as they strolled around the pitch acknowledging the cheers of the huge crowd while the English wore a stunned look as they attempted to digest what had just transpired on the pitch.
As the gap between the top-ranked teams and the minnows narrows down, the contests are getting closer than ever, and both Pool B matches on day 3 of the Odisha World Cup had the spectators on the edge of their seats till the very last minute.
It was the second clash, on Friday, which produced an unbelievable result, and several players from both sides performed admirably.
Du Talake scored the goal that got China their first World Cup points but we take a look at the performance of three individuals whose contribution was immense and consistent throughout the entire duration of the match.
#3 Wang Caiyu
As England, upped the ante at the beginning of the second quarter, Liam Ansell picked the ball up on the edge of the striking circle and took an instant powerful reverse hit which would have tested the best goalkeepers in the business.
Wang Caiyu, however, showed off his super quick reflexes as he padded the ball, calmly and efficiently away from the danger zone.
Yet again, in the 37th minute, Caiyu pulled off a near-impossible save to deny David Condon and frustrated the English strikers with his acrobatics in front of goal. One reason for England not being able to increase their tally in spite of numerous forays into Chinese territory was purely on account of Caiyu's brilliance.
#2 Guo Xiaoping
It was one of the best goals we have seen in recent times. One fleet-footed 25-year-old striker dancing his way past a host of English defenders to then display remarkable ball control and skill at the goalmouth and beat one of the most accomplished goalkeepers of the World Cup.
As a result of the opening strike, Harry Gibson replaced the immensely-experienced George Pinner at the end of the first quarter and continued to guard the England citadel until the end of the match.
Guo Xiaoping continued to display his sublime skills on the pitch and will be closely watched by the opposition benches when China continue their World Cup campaign.
It would be fair to say that Guo's opening goal set the tone for the rest of the match and depending on results that follow, may have enormous repercussions in terms of which of the teams make it through to the knockouts from Pool B.
#1 Liam Ansell
Ansell had big shoes to fill as he replaced Sam Ward, who picked up a light concussion during training, and was the last member of the England squad to fly into Bhubaneswar.
The 25-year-old striker impressed with his ability to power his way into the attacking circle and exerted immense pressure on the Chinese defence. Ansell's ability to fire in the scorching tomahawks will be vital for England as they take on the Australians next week.
England may well have reckoned that they had all three points in the bag after Ansell displayed his remarkable poaching skills by snatching the ball off a Chinese defender's stick in the striking circle and pulling the trigger before any of the yellow shirts around could bat an eyelid.
Ansell, along with captain Phil Roper, and Ian Sloan were instrumental in ensuring that England never took their feet off the pedal as a result of which Kerry's side managed to enter the Chinese circle on no less than 22 occasions.
It's early days yet, and the result may have been different if Ward was in the squad, but Ansell's performance will help to instil confidence in an England setup who face an enormous challenge ahead.
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