Muscat [Oman]: In the final encounter of the FIH Hockey5s Men’s World Cup Oman 2024, the Indian Men’s Hockey Team clinched an exciting 6-4 triumph over Egypt in Muscat, Oman, on Wednesday, securing a fifth-place finish in the tournament.
Goals for India were contributed by Mohammed Raheel (8′), Pawan Rajbhar (9′), Maninder Singh (10′, 23′), Mandeep Mor (11′), and Uttam Singh (13′), while for Egypt, Captain Amr Sayed (14′, 19′), Mostafa Ragab (23′), and Karim Atef (24′) found the back of the net, as per a Hockey India press release.
India dominated from the outset, with Mohammed Raheel (8′) and Pawan Rajbhar (9′) scoring early to establish a 2-0 lead. The momentum continued as Maninder Singh (10′), Mandeep Mor (11′), and Uttam Singh (13′) added goals in quick succession, extending India’s advantage.
Facing an unfavourable scoreline, Egypt intensified their attacks, and Captain Amr Sayed (14′, 19′) secured two goals, keeping his team in contention. Despite this, India maintained a 5-2 lead at halftime.
The second half saw Egypt launching aggressive attacks to stage a comeback, but it was Maninder Singh (23′) who scored again, giving India a 6-2 advantage. Meanwhile, Egypt netted quick goals through Mostafa Ragab (23′) and Karim Atef (24′), following which India shifted focus to defence and ball possession, which ultimately helped them register a 6-4 victory.
India finished second in Pool B with two wins and a loss, giving them a total of six points. India lost to Netherlands by 4-7 in the quarterfinals.
Netherlands, Poland, Oman and Malaysia qualified for the semifinals of the tournament. Netherlands beat Oman by 5-3 while Malaysia beat Poland by 4-3 in the second semifinal on Tuesday.
On Wednesday, Netherlands beat Malaysia by 5-2 to win the trophy.
