Tauranga (New Zealand): India went down fighting to Belgium 1-2 in a thrilling final match of the first leg of the Four Nations Invitational tournament at the Blake Park here on Sunday.

Tom Boon (4th minute) and Sebastien Dockier (36th) found the target for Belgium while Mandeep Singh (19th) was India’s lone goal scorer.

Belgium were quick to get off the block as they won a penalty corner within three minutes of the game but Loick Luypaert’s drag flick was superbly rendered ineffective by India’s first runner Chinglensana Kangujam.

Almost immediately, India had a great opportunity to score as a dribbling Dilpreet Singh made a beautiful turn at the top of the circle to dodge a Belgian defender. He then sliced the ball across to Lalit Upadhyay who had positioned himself in front of the post but sadly he could not get a nudge on the ball.

Belgium, meanwhile, mounted pressure on India with a goal through Boon in the fourth minute. With three seconds to go for the first hooter, India won a penalty corner but Rupinder Pal Singh’s fierce hit to the right bottom of the post was saved by a Belgian defender at the baseline.

India overcame a slow start in the second quarter as they gained momentum, creating potential circle penetrations. It was in the 19th minute when defender Rupinder Pal Singh intercepted a Belgian long pass to find Manpreet in the midfield who then sliced the ball into the centre of the circle.

Mandeep Singh was quick to react, beating goalkeeper Vincent Vanasch to push the ball into the post fetching India the equaliser.

The next few minutes saw India work hard to keep the ball but a structured Belgian defence was tough to break.

Meanwhile, Sreejesh made an excellent save in the 21st minute when Thomas Briels took a shot on goal, ensuring both teams went into the half-time break in a stalemate.

Last five minutes saw India’s chief coach Sjoerd Marijne pull out their goalkeeper to add an extra man to their attack. The effort worked with India winning a penalty corner in the dying minutes of the match but Harmanpreet’s attempt was well defended by the Belgians.

“We were much better than our previous match against Belgium. Our young players are making good progress against a world class team like Belgium which we will benefit from in the future. For now though, even a draw would have been a better result but the Belgium goalkeeper did some good work and made crucial saves,” said Marijne.

On January 24, India will take on hosts New Zealand in the first match of the second leg in the Four Nations Invitational tournament.