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Sultan Azlan Shah Cup: India squander lead twice as Britain earn 2-2 draw

India squandered the lead twice as Great Britain rallied to earn a 2-2 draw in the rain-delayed opening match at the 26th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament. Akashdeep Singh (19th minute) and Mandeep Singh (48th minute) scored field goals to give India the lead two times in the match but only to see the Britons hit back through Tom Carson (25th) and Alan Forsyth (52nd).


India survived a last-minute penalty corner that was awarded against them for an obstruction outside the circle. The penalty corner was confirmed after the video referral by India, but British captain Phil Roper sent his drag flick wide to the right. In the last encounter between these two teams, India had defeated Great Britain 2-1 in the Champions Trophy in London last year. The match started two hours behind schedule after the teams, who were warming up, had to scurry off the turf when lightening and heavy showers arrived in the afternoon . Since the introduction of artificial pitches, hockey is no longer affected by normal rains, but matches are stopped midway at the slightest sign on lightening to avert any threat to players and officials on the pitch. As the Indian and British players ran off the pitch and the start of the game was deferred, organisers were bracing for frequent disruptions during the week-long tournament. India

Since the introduction of artificial pitches, hockey is no longer affected by normal rains, but matches are stopped midway at the slightest sign on lightening to avert any threat to players and officials on the pitch. As the Indian and British players ran off the pitch and the start of the game was deferred, organisers were bracing for frequent disruptions during the week-long tournament. India are scheduled to play four of their five round- robin league matches in the afternoon, exactly when dark clouds tend to drench the pitch at the Ipoh hockey stadium. Great Britain launched the first raid in the ninth minute and Henry Weir took a reverse shot at the goal only to see goalkeeper P.R. Sreejesh pad the ball away Three minute later, India could have posed a danger to the British citadel when Akashdeep beat a defender with a shot that went straight to S.V. Sunil inside the scoring zone.
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