India ended their FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 campaign with an eighth-place finish after losing 3-4 to hosts Belgium in a shootout in the seventh-eighth place classification match at the Belfius Hockey Arena here on Friday.
The match ended 3-3 in regulation time after Harmanpreet Singh converted a penalty corner with just 26 seconds remaining to force the shootout.
Belgium held their nerve in the decider, with Tom Boon, Arthur de Sloover and Alexander Hendrickx converting their attempts, while Roman Duvekot scored the decisive effort. For India, Harmanpreet and Sukhjeet Singh were denied by goalkeeper Vincent Vanasch, while Abhishek converted the final attempt.
Indian goalkeeper Mohith HS challenged Duvekot’s winning effort through a referral, but the goal was upheld, handing Belgium a 4-3 shootout victory.
Harmanpreet finished the tournament with eight goals, level with Argentina’s Domene at the top of the scoring charts with one day of competition remaining.
India made a strong start and took the lead in the sixth minute through Abhishek. Manpreet Singh created the opening, finding the forward at a tight angle, from where Abhishek’s powerful push was padded away by Vanasch into his own goal.
Belgium responded with sustained pressure and, after India were reduced to 10 players when Harmanpreet was shown a yellow card for an extra-player infringement, the hosts capitalised on their numerical advantage.
Roman Duvekot equalised in the 22nd minute after creating space in front of goal and beating goalkeeper Mohith. Belgium took the lead barely a minute later when Hugo Labouchere converted a penalty corner.
India survived further pressure to trail 1-2 at half-time.
The visitors levelled immediately after the interval when Harmanpreet converted a penalty-corner drag-flick. Belgium challenged the goal, but a video review found no infringement and the equaliser stood.
Belgium appeared to restore their lead through Hendrickx from another penalty corner, but India’s successful referral saw the goal ruled out for height.
The teams remained level after the third quarter, but Belgium regained the advantage early in the final period. Manpreet was forced off after being struck in the face by a close-range attempt from Labouchere.
Belgium then regained the lead when Nicolas de Kerpel collected the ball after it deflected off an Indian defender and struck a low hit that bounced off the turf and past Mohith.
India pushed forward in search of an equaliser, but Belgium’s defence stood firm and Vanasch made a crucial save from Abhishek’s reverse hit in the 57th minute.
India withdrew goalkeeper Suraj Karkera with less than three minutes left to add an extra outfield player. The move paid off in the closing seconds when India won a penalty corner with 26 seconds remaining. Harmanpreet made no mistake with his drag-flick, beating Vanasch to make it 3-3 and force the shootout.
Belgium ultimately prevailed in the shootout to finish seventh, while India settled for eighth.
For Harmanpreet, the campaign ended with a personal milestone of eight goals. For India, however, the result capped a tournament in which missed opportunities earlier in the competition prevented them from challenging for a place in the semi-finals.
(IANS Inputs)
