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The Indian women's hockey team went down fighting against Germany in sudden death in the semifinals of the FIH Olympic Hockey Qualifiers on Thursday, January 18.
Both teams were locked 2-2 at the end of regulation time with Savita Punia keeping the Indians in the match in regulation time before pulling off a couple of magnificent saves in the shootout.
On a misty evening in Ranchi with low visibility levels, Lisa Nolte scored a cheeky shootout goal to take Germany to the Olympic Games. The Indians will need to beat Japan in the bronze-medal match of the Olympic Hockey Qualifiers.
India earned a short corner in the final minute of the first quarter with Deepika scoring with a well-directed low drag-flick that German goalkeeper Julia Sonntag failed to stop.
Charlotte Stepenhorst broke down the Indian deep defence with an opportunistic goal from open play to restore parity for her side with three minutes to go for the long breather.
The unrelenting Germans pressed the Indians hard at the end of the third quarter with Stepenhorst and Anne Schroder combining dangerously but the home team survived the onslaught.
An unmarked Deepika had a chance to score against the run of play in the 49th minute but Sonntag pulled off an admirable save from close range before the Germans earned a PC with Salima Tete in the sin bin.
Charlotte Stepenhorst pounced on the ball following a defensive lapse from the Indians to give Germany a 2-1 lead in the 57th minute to break Indian hearts.
The Indians, however, earned a PC at the death and a follow-up short corner for danger, which Ishika Chaudhury converted following a delectable routine.
Navneet Kaur and Neha Goyal missed for the Indians in the shootout after Sangita Kumari, Sonika and Lalremsiami found the mark.
Sangita Kumari then missed in sudden death which followed, while Sonja Zimmerman's goal was disallowed. Lisa Nolte, however, made no mistake with her shootout after Sonika failed to score.
India needs to beat Japan in bronze-medal match of Olympic Hockey Qualifiers to keep Olympic dream alive
The Indians, who went down to Germany have another shot at earning their place at the Games with a bronze-medal match against Japan coming up on Friday.
Japan, who were leading the USA by a lone 38-minute penalty corner strike, suffered a loss after conceding two late goals in the first semifinal of the Olympic Hockey Qualifiers.
Ashley Hoffman levelled the score off a short corner with eight minutes left on the clock before another PC goal in the 55th minute helped the USA qualify for the Paris Olympics after missing out in Tokyo.
India had beaten Japan 2-1 in the bronze-medal match of the Asian Games last year and followed it up with another win by an identical margin in the group stages of the Asian Champions Trophy that followed.
The final of the Asian Champions trophy proved to be a one-sided affair. The Indians overwhelmed Japan in Ranchi en route to a 4-0 drubbing with goals from Sangita Kumari, Neha Goyal, Lalremsiami and Vandana Katariya.
While Vandana Katariya is currently sidelined owing to injury, the Indian strikers excelled against New Zealand and Italy. But, the home side would be wary of Japan who managed to hold Germany to a 1-1 draw in the group stage.
The Indians will play Japan in the bronze-medal match of the Olympic Hockey Qualifiers on Friday, January 19.
