India defeated Argentina 2-1 to register their second consecutive victory at the Champions Trophy hockey tournament on Sunday. Harmanpreet Singh gave India the lead off a penalty corner in the 17th minute before Mandeep Singh (28th minute) doubled the advantage with a field goal. Matias Paredes powered home a penalty in the 30th minute to reduce the margin for Argentina. India had thrashed arch-rivals Pakistan 4-0 in their inaugural match. Ramandeep Singh, Dilpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh and Lalit Upadhyay scored for the men in blue who completely dominated their opponents throughout at the packed BH & BC Hockey Stadium. It was Roelant Oltmans-coached Pakistani outfit who were on the attack mode right from the start. India’s goalkeeper PR Sreejesh was put to task in the initial minutes of the match when Muhammad Irfan Junior took a strong shot on goal but the Indian skipper was up to the challenge, making an impressive save. For Pakistan, it was the experienced Muhammad Irfan holding their defence. They used pace in the midfield to hold sway, and did not allow India easy circle entry. India tried high balls to penetrate and make space in the striking circle but it did not work. However, a clever stick work by Mandeep Singh in the baseline helped India win the first PC of the match. The chance though went begging as Harmanpreet Singh couldn’t get the right pace on his flick, as Pakistan’s experienced goalkeeper Imran Butt broke no sweat to save. The second quarter was crucial for India after a goalless start. Mandeep brought hope again with another impressive effort to fetch India their second PC in the opening minute of the quarter but a poor injection wasted the opportunity.
