Delhi Waveriders hold Uttar Pradesh Wizards 1-1, top points table

The Hero Hockey India League has generated much excitement in the first five matches and there were lofty expectations from all and sundry at the Dhyan Chand Hockey Stadium in Lucknow as Uttar Pradesh Wizards took on Delhi Waveriders in a crucial league match.

Playing in front of a crowd of 7,000, the Wizards, who showed superb combined play in their opening game win over Jaypee Punjab Warriors, inexplicably appeared out of sorts in the first quarter. Their midfield hardly looked like playing as a cohesive unit.

Delhi Waveriders, on the other hand, were rock-solid in the midfield with skipper Sardar Singh not allowing any open spaces for the UP side.

The Riders enjoyed possession for most part and forced their first penalty corner in the third minute, which resulted in a follow-on PC from which Wizards’ Australian goalkeeper George Bazeley pulled off a fine save of a potent shot from Rupinder Pal Singh.

The continued controlled possession paid off for the Riders when they drew first blood in the seventh minute when Sardar Singh fed a killer pass to New Zealander Simon Child, whose stinging reverse hit brook no answer from Bazeley.

The Wizards showed some urgency in the closing stages of the opening quarter when they forced their first penalty corner in the sixteenth minute when SK Uthappa was obstructed inside the Riders’ D. The short corner resulted in a follow-on PC. Wizards captain Raghunath failed to make the most of it as Riders’ German goalkeeper Nicolas Jacobi, who was hardly tested in the first fifteen minutes of play, effected a fine save.

The Delhi outfit put Wizards under pressure at the start of the second quarter when they earned their third penalty corner in the 20the minute as German Oskar Deecke played on to the foot of one of the Delhi defenders. Rupinder failed to slam home as Wizards survived a potential goal-scoring scare.

The Wizards started to get some flow going in their attacks in the second quarter. Veteran Dutch forward Teun De Nooijer, sped down the left of the Delhi citadel but unfairly tackled by a Delhi defender, which resulted in their third penalty corner.

Delhi skipper strongly objected to the umpire Harshavardhan’s decision to award a PC and was accordingly green-carded. The short corner saw a goalmouth melee prompting the umpire to whistle for a follow-on PC. Raghunath finally made it count, clobbering one past Jacobi to restore parity for the Wizards in the 25th minute as both teams went into half time with a 1-1 scoreline.

Delhi were reduced to 10-man in the third quarter as Yuvraj Walmiki was shown the yellow card for a tackle on Raghunath.

Wizards forwardline cut a disappointing figure. Save for the occasional brilliance of Nooijer, the rest struggled to give a good account of themselves. India discard Tushar Khandker flopped for the second straight game – something which would not do his national comeback plans any good.

The UP outfit had a chance to go ahead in the closing stages of the third quarter but Pradhan Somanna fed Netherlands’ Jeroen Herztberger, who bungled that opportunity.

Delhi appeared disjointed upfront in the last two quarters. Gurwinder Singh Chandi, Danish Mujtaba and Yuvraj Walmiki had a bad day in office. Yuvraj once again let his team down with a second suspension – shown the yellow card for a harsh challenge on Netherlands’ Jolie Wouter – he earlier served a five minute suspension (was yellow carded) in the third quarter.

The final quarter was devoid of free-flowing hockey as both teams tried to control the midfield.

Delhi had an opportunity to go ahead when they earned their fourth penalty corner two minutes from the final hooter. The Riders tried an indirect direction and messed it up.

The final two minutes did not produce the match-clinching goal as both teams held out for a 1-1 draw – which was also the first draw of the league.

With this draw, Delhi Waveriders have reached the top of the points table with 12 points from three games, while Uttar Pradesh Wizards occupied the third spot in the standings with 7 points from two matches.

Delhi captain Sardar Singh thanked the Lucknow crowd for their support.

UP captain Raghunath said his team was happy with the draw. “It was a fast-paced match. It is better to come out with a draw than losing.”