The Indian men’s hockey team defeated Britain 3-1 in the quarter-finals of the Tokyo Olympics to enter the semi-finals. The Indian team, once the uncrowned king of the hockey field in the Olympics, has reached the semi-finals here after 41 years. Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has congratulated the Indian hockey team for their resounding victory in the quarter-finals.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik tweeted on the victory of the hockey team and wrote, “Great performance, congratulations to the Indian men’s hockey team for a wonderful win against Great Britain in the quarter final. Hope Team India performs in the next match also. And will end the country’s wait for years by bringing medals in hockey. All the best.” Naveen Patnaik has also shared a video with his tweet in which he is seen watching the match between India and Great Britain.
India won the hockey medal for the last time in the 1980 Olympic Games. However, the team has performed brilliantly in all its matches so far. If this team’s form continues in the semi-final against Belgium, then India can end its medal drought in Olympic hockey.
Odisha is the official sponsor of both the Indian women’s and men’s hockey team. Puri MP Pinaki Mishra also congratulated the Indian hockey team for reaching the semi-finals. He wrote in his tweet, “After 41 years, the men’s hockey team has reached the semi-finals of the Olympics and only after 40 years the women’s hockey team has reached the quarter-finals. Odisha is the official sponsor of both these national teams since 2018. Also the country It is the only state in India to sponsor a national team.
Along with this, praising the contribution of the Chief Minister of the state for the game of hockey, he said, “Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is constantly striving to return the golden days of Indian hockey. Hockey fans across the country are appreciating his contribution. Congratulations to the Chief Minister for his efforts.”
For India in the quarter-finals, Dilpreet Singh scored in the seventh minute, Gurjant Singh in the 16th and Hardik Singh scored in the 57th minute. Samuel Ward scored the only goal for Britain in the 45th minute. In the semi-finals, India will face world champions Belgium, who defeated Spain 3-1 in the third quarter-final match.