India out of Men's Hockey World Cup after losing to New Zealand in crossover match

Bhubaneswar, January 22

India crashed out of the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup after losing 4-5 via penalty shootout to lower-ranked New Zealand following a 3-3 stalemate after the regulation time in a crossover match here on Sunday.

India, ranked sixth in the world, produced a below-par performance, allowing New Zealand to claw back into the match after taking a 2-0 lead in the first half.

India scored through Lalit Upadhyay (17th minute), Sukhjeet Singh (24th) and Varun Kumar (40th).

New Zealand replied through Sam Lane (28th) and two penalty-corner conversions by Kane Russell (43rd) and Sean Findlay (49th).

New Zealand will now take on reigning world champions Belgium in the quarterfinals.