HWL Final, India vs Australia — As it happened...

Follow live India-Australia hockey score and updates from HWL Final, being played in Bhubaneswar.

Courtesy: PTI

New Delhi: It's the proverbial trial by fire for hosts India as they start their Hockey World League Final campaign with an encounter against world champions Australia.

FULL TIME
INDIA 1 - 1 AUSTRALIA

01 December 2017

20:59 IST

60th min. So thus it ends with a draw, even as Rupinder Singh Pal continues to argue one of the referees. The match ends with an Indian flourish, like the start. But the match, as a whole, was a cagey encounter, with sparks of individual brilliance in between.

20:56 IST

58th min. Aussies, for a change, dominated the proceedings in the last couple of minutes without really troubling the Indian defenders. SV Sunil, what a run from the experienced player. he then opts for Gurjant Singh on his blind side instead of SK Uthappa, who's in front of him, inside the circle. Gurjant goes with a solo, a dribble only to wastes the chance.

20:50 IST

54th min. The crowd erupts at the sound of ball hitting the plank. But it turns out to be the sidebar. India continue to press hard, and win a PC thanks to a Lachlan Sharp push, a shoulder charge. Then, Birendra Lakra fails to stop the ball from PC injection. What a waste.

20:45 IST

48th min. India happy to keep the possession. Then, a poor touch from Varun Kumar, and Aussies get the possession back. No harms done though, as India keep their defending neat and tidy.

20:41 IST

And that's the end of third quarter.

20:39 IST

48th min. Brilliant defending once again from the Indian backline. Harmanpreet Singh then finds himself involved in a tussle, giving away the ball thanks to a referee 's call. Aussies continue to press hard. But within seconds, India get another chance with Akashdeep missing the target again from close.

20:34 IST

44th min. Gurjant Singh is hobbling slightly after taking a hit. Aussies still holding back their move, rolling the ball around in their own half. Manpreet Singh wins the ball back for India, then releases it for Mandeep Singh. But the youngster fails to keep the ball in play. Poor single-handed first touch.

20:26 IST

42nd min: Brave move from Sumit. Inside the circle with so many players surrounding him, but goes for a reverse hit. Misses the target. India then use the referral to claim that one of the Aussie players got the ball deflected from the back of the stick. And India lose the referral. Hurriedly taken the referral from India, one would say. Then, from the following play, Australia win another PC, and Akash Chikte comes to India's rescue. Aussies challenges the clearance call. Safe play in question. High ball. Still a PC for the Aussie. Rupinder Pal Singh uses his body in the defence, and as a result, some pain and third PC. Brilliant defending from India, though.

20:23 IST

34th min. Today, Akashdeep Singh is missing so many chances today. His hit just misses the target by a whisker as he goes for a deflection. SV Sunil, then, rushes towards the referee and claims for a PC. No PC but India keep the referral.

20:21 IST

33rd min. What a chance. Harmanpreet Singh's drag flick almost beats the Aussie goalie. In was the second back-to-back PC for India.

20:19 IST

32nd min. Positive start from India with SK Uthappa breaching the Aussie defence, but his link-up play with Akashdeep Singh fails. Then, India wins a PC.

20:11 IST

Skipper Manpreet Singh, who's playing his 200th international game, promises to keep pressing for more goals in the next quarter. In the first half, India slightly dominated with 51% possession. And more chances too.

20:07 IST

30th min. Aussies have increased the tempo of the game in the last couple of minutes, changing flanks, and breaching the Indian defence more few times. But, it's still 1-1 in Bhuvneshwar. Half-time.

20:04 IST

27th min. Akashdeep Singh, in the centre, manages to beat two Aussie players then releases the ball of SV Sunil. Ball beats the player. Sumit then tries to penetrate from the left flank, promising, but ends up conceding a free hit to Australia. Too eager in his effort. too physical, and with a bit of stick in the play.

20:02 IST

26th min. Manpreet Singh is just brilliant. Cool and calm. He wins a crucial tackle in the centre and releases the ball. But from the following play, India miss the possession even as Akash Chikte gets his goalkeeping wears in order once again. 

19:58 IST

25th min. Amit Rohidas concedes a PC thanks to his high stick. Aussies make a mess of it, and India continue with their pressing run. Gurjant Singh then wins a free hit in the centre. India, however, fail to keep the possession, and Akash Chikte gets to show his acrobatic move to palm a drive. Huge save.

19:56 IST

22nd min. Jake Whetton wins their second PC and Jeremy Hayward beats Akash Chikte on the left. It's 1-1 now.

19:53 IST

20th min. Skipper Manpreet Singh finds Mandeep Singh inside the Aussie circle with a precise pass, but the Aussie produces a sliding tackle to thwart the Indian advance. But, Mandeep scores the first goal with a diving finish, seconds later after the clearance, in the 20th min.

19:51 IST

17th min. Comedy of errors with Aussie defenders missing the flight of the ball in a melee, then Akashdeep Singh finds the ball in front of the goal. But he fails to hit the target. His reverse hit not upto the mark.

19:48 IST

15th min. Another brilliant move from the left flank with Akashdeep Singh leading the charge. But, it's still nil-nil.

19:47 IST

14th min. On the counter, Akashdeep Singh finds himself one on one with an Aussie defender. He manages to enter the circle but fails to connect his reverse sweep.

19:44 IST

13th min. Eddie Ockenden and SV Sunil get involved in a confrontation, forcing the referee to stop the play. By the way, Akash Chikte just produced a brilliant diving save to deny Aussie the first strike. Good PC but the Indian goalie was upto the task.

19:43 IST

12th min. Eddie Ockenden tries a solo run inside the Indian half. but he gets blocked.  Then the ball goes out of play for a long corner. Then, Harmanpreet Singh with the boot. PC to Australia.

19:41 IST

10th min. Mandeep Singh picks a brilliant ball just in front of the Aussie circle, then he tries to change flanks, but a foul comes his way. Free hit to India.

19:39 IST

7th min. After a frenetic start, the match now takes a slow pace with the Aussies trying to control from the midfield. But there comes another chance for India on the counter, and even asks for a PC. Not given. India now have 72% possession. But still too early to make a call.

19:36 IST

5th min. First PC of the match. Good chance for India. Jake Harvie the culprit, for tripping Indian player inside the circle. India, however, fail to make the most out of it. Poor injection, and even poorer stop. Free hit to the Aussies.

19:34 IST

3rd min. What a start from India. Already a couple of scoring chance against the defending champions, and this crowd is making some noise.

19:30 IST

National anthem round done. Players take positions, and both the sides turn up in their traditional colours – India in blues and Aussies in yellow.

19:16 IST

In case you missed the opening ceremony, relive it here:

Nice job @TheHockeyIndia
Opening ceremony at th Odisha #HWL2017 in Bhubaneswar was We are all set for the next big game #INDvAUS
LIVE in 20 mins! @CMO_Odisha @odishatourism @TicketGenieIN pic.twitter.com/6T10grbBFf

— FIH (@FIH_Hockey) December 1, 2017

19:15 IST

Starting XI for India: 2-Akash Chikte (GK),3-Rupinder Pal Singh, 12-Dipsan Tirkey, 7-Manpreet Singh (C), 22-Varun Kumar, 1-Harmanpreet Singh, 29-Chinglensana Kangujam, 15- SK Uthappa, 9-Gurjant Singh, 27-Akashdeep Singh, 24-SV Sunil

19:01 IST

Meanwhile, here's the head-to-head record between the two teams. 120 matches played so far, with India winning 22 of those. Aussies have won 80 times. Not the prettiest of figures for India.

18:38 IST

HWL is a different beast, involving teams that India have struggled to beat, and that’s the course-correction Sjoerd Marijne wound want to initiate with this tournament. Read the complete tournament preview HERE.

18:37 IST

Here are the squads:

INDIA: 1-Harmanpreet Singh, 2-Akash Chikte (GK), 3-Rupinder Pal Singh, 5-Kothajit Khadangbam, 7-Manpreet Singh (C), 9-Gurjant Singh, 11-Mandeep Singh, 12-Dipsan Tirkey, 13 - Suraj Karkera (GK), 14-Lalit Upadhyay, 15- SK Uthappa, 17- Sumit, 18-Amit Rohidas, 22-Varun Kumar, 24-SV Sunil, 26-Birendra Lakra, 27-Akashdeep Singh, 29-Chinglensana Kangujam

AUSTRALIA: 1-Lachlan Sharp, 4-Jake Harvie, 5-Tom Wickham, 6-Matt Dawson, 7-Jeremy Edwards, 8-Tristan Clemons (GK), 9-Mark Knowles (C), 11- Eddie Ockenden, 12-Jake Whetton, 13-Blake Govers, 14-Aaron Kleinschmidt, 17-Aran Zaleski, 18-Tristan White, 20-Matthew Swann, 23-Daniel Beale, 24-Tyler Lovell (GK), 26-Dylan Wotherspoon, 32-Jeremy Hayward

18:31 IST

But the big match on day 1 of the tournament is between India and Australia. It will start in short while.

18:26 IST

In the tournament opener, between two European powerhouses, Germany defeated England 2-0 with Mats Grambusch and Christopher Ruhr scoring in 19th and 25th minutes respectively.