CHENNAI: The picture could not be more different in comparison to India's game against China. The team which converted five out of its nine penalty corners the previous day against China, could convert just one out of 15 PCs against Japan.
While the missed chances will certainly be rued, the real game-changer was a rocklike Japanese defence that stood between India and a resounding victory as the two sides played out an enthralling 1-1 draw at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium here on Friday.
While the visitors dramatically pulled down India's PC conversion rate, the y themselves pounced upon one of the only two PCs they earned courtesy Ken Nagayoshi's perfectly placed dragflick to go in front. The body blow shook the home team and it eventually boiled down to skipper Harmanpreet Singh, who bailed them out with a stinging strike to save the day and the blushes.
The first quarter saw attritional play as Japan stayed well organized in defence and prevented any clear field goal chance. Whenever India drew a foul in the D, the Japanese blocked Harmanpreet's powerful drag-flicks with a series of rushes, not averse to conceding PCs to avoid goals. The first Indian PC arrived in the fifth minute and led to three more. Harmanpreet thrice struck the incoming rushers and was unsuccessful with the fourth one.
The sequence was repeated in the 14th minute, when a searching run by Gurjant Singh induced a short corner and again, Japan's robust stonewalling denied four Indian attempts. As a result, the hosts could not convert even one of the eight PCs they earned in the first 15 minutes.
India started to create more and better field openings in the second quarter, but were still kept at bay. In the 17th minute, Japan custodian Takumi Kitagawa first thwarted forward Akashdeep Singh attempt, then saved Mandeep's attempt to frustrate the expectant Chennai crowd.
After resolutely enduring a prolonged period of Indian offensive, Japan turned the tide by pushing forward and making the most of their second PC in the 28th minute, Nagayoshi putting it past goalie Krishan Pathak in the bottom right corner. The fierce battle continued in the third quarter as India returned to their attacking ways and Japan held their shape.
A five-metre violation on an aerial ball broke the deadlock as India finally scored off their 10th PC. The dependable Harmanpreet drilled in Hardik Singh's injection low between Takashi Yoshikawa's legs and brought parity.
However, a yellow card for Mandeep Singh meant India were down to 10 men in the last four minutes, and that blunted their hopes as they were forced to play to avoid defeat against a side ranked 15 places below them.
