Chennai: The Indian junior men's hockey team scripted history by securing their first-ever bronze medal in the FIH Hockey Men's Junior World Cup 2025 at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium in Chennai. The hosts recorded a sensational 4-2 comeback win against Argentina, scoring four goals in eleven minutes to secure third place in the tournament.
Ankit Pal (49’), Manmeet Singh (52’), Shardanand Tiwari (57’), and Anmol Ekka (58’) scored for India after Nicolas Rodriguez (3’) and Santiago Fernandez (44’) had given the visitors the lead.
This is the first time that India has won the bronze medal after winning two gold medals (2001, 2016) and a silver (1997) previously, and faced heartbreak when the team missed the bronze medal in 2005, losing to Spain in a penalty stroke in the third-place playoff.
It was an encouraging start for India in the second quarter, picking up from where they left off in the first. They began to grow into the game and created more notable chances, putting pressure on the Argentine defence that stayed compact on most occasions. Dilraj Singh had a shot on target, while the hosts created a few half-chances with eight circle penetrations in the first half, continuing to dominate possession in search of the equaliser. However, Argentina held firm to close out the first half with a 1-0 advantage.
India got the ball rolling, earning a few penalty corners in the early exchanges of the third quarter. They remained relentless on the attack, asking questions of the Argentine defence that sat back.
