India squander lead to lose 1-3 to Australia

A spirited India squandered a goal lead to lose 1-3 against defending champions Australia in a preliminary league match of the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament in Ipoh, Malaysia, today.

After managing to hold the world champions in the first quarter, India took the initial lead in the 25th minute through a field goal from Harmanpreet Singh, but Australia later pumped in three field goals to maintain their position atop the round-robin league standings.