India, Feb. 18 -- Reigning World Champions, Germany beat India 4-1 in a high-octane encounter at the FIH Hockey Pro League 2024-25 (Men) at the iconic Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday. Goals by Florian Sperling (7'), Thies Prinz (14'), Michel Struthoff (48'), and Raphael Hartkopf (55') helped Germany clinch the winning points, while Gurjant Singh (13') was India's lone goal scorer.

Though India looked like they held better possession in the first five minutes of the opening quarter, the tactically-driven attack by the Germans landed a field goal in the 7th minute of the game. It was a brilliant assist by Eric Kleinlein to Florian Sperling who finished the job with great finesse.

India were quick to respond, when Rajinder...