India got their Hockey World Cup campaign to a perfect start as they humiliated South Africa 5-0 in the tournament opener at the Kalinga stadium in Bhubaneshwar.
Mandeep Singh scored twice to give India a 2-0 lead in the first quarter. By the end of the first half, South Africa were clearly on the defensive. After that, the rainbow nation could not recover and the game went one way from there. They conceded 2 more goals in the third quarter when Simranjeet Singh and Lalit Upadhay found the back of the net.
Simranjeet scored again in the last quarter to make it 5-0 and that pretty much sealed the deal. It is certainly an impressive start for the hosts as they look to end their 43-year wait for the World Cup title.
Indian hockey team’s win has certainly made every Indian proud. Twitter is filled with congratulatory messages for Manpreet Singh and company. India’s cricketing fraternity also took to the micro-blogging site to laud the emphatic victory.
Here are some of the tweets:
Well done, boys! Good to see you getting off the mark in great fashion. Congratulations on your 5-0 win against South Africa. #HWC2018 #HumBhiHockey pic.twitter.com/E29cwNrdvB
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) November 28, 2018
Congratulations @TheHockeyIndia , 5-0 is a great start. Best wishes #IndvRSA pic.twitter.com/quJqlrWygG
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) November 28, 2018
High Five for Indian hockey team! 5-0 win for my men. Well done boys. @TheHockeyIndia @FIH_Hockey @sports_odisha
— Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) November 28, 2018
What a start to the World Cup campaign for India. 5-0 win against South Africa???????????? #GetBehindOurBoys #HockeyWorldCup
— Gaurav Kapur (@gauravkapur) November 28, 2018
5-0 thrashing for South Africa in the opening encounter. Chak de India! #HockeyWorldCup2018
— Cricketwallah (@cricketwallah) November 28, 2018
Great start to our campaign at the Hockey Men's World Cup. 5-0 #IndvRSA @TheHockeyIndia pic.twitter.com/NjmzsDVTbT
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) November 28, 2018
A resounding win for @TheHockeyIndia against South Africa to start the world cup campaign. May we carry this momentum forward #IndvRSA pic.twitter.com/ZvOGUJPOz3
— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) November 28, 2018
It is exciting to see India ???????? begin the #HockeyWorldCup2018 with a bang @TheHockeyIndia #INDvRSA
— Hemang Badani (@hemangkbadani) November 28, 2018