Antwerp: India made the semi-finals of the Fintro Hockey World League despite the absence of some of the senior players and a clear deficiency in executing penalty corners, but then came a cropper against a far superior Belgian side, which buoyed by its fans outplayed them 4-0.


Indian skipper Sardar Singh (left) and Birendra Lakra. Pic/AFP 

India will now need to play much smarter against Great Britain for the bronze medal. Britain lost to World No 1 Australia 1-3. India has played well in patches in most matches and their wins over France and Poland and the draw with Pakistan got them to second place and then they beat Malaysia 3-2 to reach semis.