After a heartbreaking 2-3 loss to reigning World Champions Germany in a nail-biting semifinal, the Indian men's hockey team will now turn its attention to Spain as they compete for the bronze medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics. The India vs Spain Paris 2024 Olympics bronze medal match will be played at the Yves-du-Manoir Stadium in Colombes on Thursday.
Ranked fifth in the world, India narrowly lost to second-ranked Germany on Tuesday. Skipper Harmanpreet Singh and Sukhjeet Singh scored for the Tokyo 2020 bronze medalists, but it wasn't enough to secure a victory. India will now go for one final shot to secure the bronze medal at this year's Olympics.
Disappointment Against the Germans
With the score tied at 2-2, Marco Miltkau netted a late goal for Germany, sending them into the gold medal match against the Netherlands. Meanwhile, India advanced to the bronze medal match for the second consecutive Olympics.
India had earlier finished second in the group stage, with three wins and a draw out of five matches. In the quarterfinals, despite being reduced to 10 men in the first 20 minutes, Harmanpreet Singh's side triumphed over Great Britain in a shootout.
Harmanpreet Singh's goal in the semifinal made him the tournament's top scorer with eight goals.
Eighth-ranked Spain had a tough semifinal against the Netherlands, who have won gold twice before. The Dutch secured a 4-0 victory.
Earlier, Spain had defeated defending champions Belgium 3-2 in the quarterfinals. They finished fourth in the group stage with two wins out of five matches.
Since the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, India and Spain have faced each other nine times across various tournaments, with the Indian hockey team winning five of those encounters. However, two of those victories came in a shootout.
Earlier this year, the two teams met twice in the FIH Pro League. India claimed a 4-1 victory in the first match and won the second match in a shootout.
When and Where
The India Vs Spain men's hockey bronze medal match at Paris Olympics 2024 will be played on Thursday, Aug 8 at Yves-du-Manoir Stadium, Paris, France.
The India Vs Spain men's hockey bronze medal match at Paris Olympics 2024 begins at 2 pm (local time), 8pm ET, 1pm BST and 5:30pm IST.
How to Watch/ Livestream
United States: The India Vs Spain men's hockey bronze medal match at Paris Olympics 2024 will be broadcast on Peacock, NBC Sports, Universo while live streaming will be available on Fubo.
United Kingdom: The India Vs Spain men's hockey bronze medal match at Paris Olympics 2024 will be broadcast on Discovery+, EuroSport Player UK. The India Vs Spain men's hockey bronze medal match at Paris Olympics 2024 will be available for livestreaming on discovery+ App, EuroSport 2 UK
India: The India Vs Spain men's hockey bronze medal match at Paris Olympics 2024 will be broadcast on Sports 18 Network, and available for livestreaming on JioCinema app and website for free.
