Hockey India League: Dragons prevail in shootout

CHENNAI: In a thrilling start to the men’s Hockey India League (HIL), Hyderabad Toofans held ‘home side’ Tamil Nadu Dragons to a 3-3 draw in regulation time but could not stop them from earning a bonus point here on Saturday.In the penalty shootout, Dragons prevailed 4-2 and it was goalkeeper Princedeep Singh who provided them the impetus. The decision to bring on Princedeep for the shootout turned out to be a masterstroke in the end.Dragons started the match aggressively, and Mohammed Raheel earned them their first penalty corner. Drag-flicker Blake Grovers’ shot was deflected off goalkeeper Jean-Paul Danneberg, before the ball struck a defender’s foot on the goal line. Uttam Singh (4th minute), positioned perfectly, just had to push the ball into the net.A few minutes later, receiving a pass from Tom Craig, Tomas Sorsby (9th) drove 25 yards down and exploited the open space. As the goalkeeper rushed out to close him down, the midfielder moved a yard to his right, creating the angle before slipping the ball into the goal.Toofans found their opener through dragflicker Amandeep Lakra (12th minute). In the 22nd minute, the 22-year-old struck again from a penalty corner to bring his side truly back into the contest.But soon after the half-time break, Dragons grabbed the lead through Karthi Selvam (32nd). Defender Arthur De Sloover (37th) equalised for Toofans from a tight angle.