India lose shootout to hosts Belgium, finish eighth at FIH Hockey World Cup
India were beaten by hosts Belgium 4-3 in a penalty shootout after a 3-3 draw in the 7th-8th place classification match at the Belfius Hockey Arena in Wavre on Friday, leaving the Indian men's team eighth at the FIH Men’s Hockey World Cup 2026. Harmanpreet Singh scored a last-minute equaliser to force the shootout, but India missed two attempts and Belgium prevailed.
The match served as India’s final game of the tournament, with Abhishek opening the scoring in the sixth minute before Roman Duvekot (22′) and Hugo Labouchere (23′) put Belgium 2-1 ahead at half-time. Harmanpreet levelled from a penalty corner shortly after the break (31′), Nicolas de Kerprel restored Belgium’s lead in the 47th minute, and Harmanpreet struck again from a penalty corner with 26 seconds remaining to make it 3-3 and send the game to a shootout. The fixture decided the seventh and eighth places on the final weekend of competition.
Belgium applied heavy pressure early and repeatedly entered India’s circle, forcing saves from Suraj Karkera and building a sequence of penalty-corner chances that India defended on several occasions. India were reduced to 10 players midway through the first half when Harmanpreet received a yellow card for an extra player on the pitch, allowing Belgium to press with a numerical advantage and win further set pieces. Karkera produced key interventions from multiple retaken penalty corners, while India relied on low blocks and clearances to survive the opening periods.
The second quarter saw Belgium convert two quick chances through Duvekot and Labouchere after India had temporarily regained full strength, while India’s equaliser at 31 minutes followed a penalty-corner routine involving Rajinder Singh that Harmanpreet finished with a drag-flick. Belgium had a penalty-corner goal ruled out for height after a successful Indian referral, and later in the fourth quarter Manpreet Singh left the field with a facial injury sustained during an on-target attempt by Labouchere. Belgium’s 47th-minute goal came when the ball deflected off an Indian defender to fall to de Kerprel and into the net beyond goalkeeper Mohith HS.
India sacrificed goalkeeper Suraj Karkera late in the game to play an extra attacker and won a penalty corner with 26 seconds left; Harmanpreet converted to level the scores. In the shootout Vincent Vanasch denied Harmanpreet Singh and Sukhjeet Singh, while India’s Shilanand Lakra, Dilpreet Singh and Abhishek scored from their attempts. For Belgium Tom Boon, Arthur de Sloover, Alexander Hendrickx and Roman Duvekot scored in the shootout and Victor Foubert missed his attempt; Mohith HS lodged a referral after Duvekot’s decisive strike but the goal stood, handing Belgium a 4-3 shootout win.
Reflecting on the campaign, Hardik said: "It's really disappointing. We should have won some matches where we were leading the score. But I think that's how hockey is. Whoever got the opportunity and they executed in the match, won," said Hardik after the match. The result left India with seven points from six matches and just two wins in the tournament.
Harmanpreet finished the World Cup with eight goals, joint top of the scoring charts with Argentina’s Domene, with one day of competition remaining. India conclude their World Cup campaign in eighth place, while Belgium take seventh, and attention will now shift to the Asian Games.