The Indian men's hockey team suffered a heart-breaking 1-2 defeat at the hands of Germany after Christopher Ruhr scrapped a last-minute winner for the two-time reigning champions in their Pool B clash of the Rio Olympics here on Monday.
After a goalless first quarter, it was Germany who opened the scoring first via Niklas Wellen in the 17th minute of the match.
India, however, soon responded through penalty corner specialist Rupinder Pal's strike in the 23rd minute as the second quarter ended at 1-1.
In the third quarter, Germany produced a strong possession but they failed to open up the Indian defence.
Although India had a great chance to extend their score in the third quarter when Rupinder smashed a brilliant flick, German goalie Jacobi Nicolas displayed a resilient performance by saving the probable goal.
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With just few minutes left to the final whistle, it was Ruhr who scored a winning goal for Germany as they sunk India to an agonizing 2-1 defeat.
The victory saw Germany overtake Netherlands for the top spot in the Pool B with six points while India remains in third position with three points.
Earlier, India clinched an impressive 3-2 win over Ireland in their opening Pool B match.
The defeat brought back the memory of 2012 London Olympics when India were beaten 2-5 by Germany.
