FIH Hockey Pro League :China women's beat Belgium as Belgium men thrashes South Africa

Both the squad were equally matched and struggled to get past the midfield. The deadlock was finally broken when Gu Bingfeng went the ball into the net past the Belgian goalkeeper Aisling D'Hooghe to make it 1-0 for China. After more than 30 minutes of a cagey faceoff, Barbara Nelen broke past the Chinese line of defence and passed the ball to France le Mot, who slotted the ball into the net.

The final whistle rang with the squads tied 1-1, and the match was sent into a shootout. The confident performance of Liu Ping paid off. China got a bonus point, winning the shootout 2-0.

In a post-match interview, Zhang Zindan said, "We didn't play well in the first half yesterday, but we played better in the second half, so today we started as we finished the match yesterday. Our goalkeeper is great. She has done well in many games. We are pleased about our progress. We have beaten teams above us in the World rankings, so we will gain ranking points.

Belgium defeated South Africa 4-2 in the second leg of the FIH Pro League match at Sportcentrum Wilrijkse Plein in Antwerp

Within the regulation time, Onana Nelson in the sixth minute, Van Aubel Florent in the 36th minute and Boon Tom in the 39th and 44th minute were the goalscorers for Belgium. In contrast, in the 1st and 48th minutes, Beauchamp Connor was the sole goal scorer for South Africa.

South Africa took the lead in the game's first minute as Beauchamp Connor fired the ball into the net past the Belgian goalkeeper Loic van Doren from a penalty corner. Four minutes later, Onana Nelson levelled the score for Belgium as he slipped the ball into the net after going around the keeper. Belgium took control of the ball in the second quarter but failed to get past the South African line of defence. The first half ended with both the squads tied at one goal each.

The Belgian squad tightened their grip on the game in the third quarter. Tom Boon went on the offensive with sheer determination. However, the strike bounced back and landed on the feet of Cedric Charlier, but the South African goalkeeper also denied his effort. Belgium soon got a penalty corner. Tom Boon took the shot and landed the ball into the net with a well-composed strike. Five minutes later, he scored again to make it 4-1 for Belgium.

The South African squad burst into action as Nqobile Ntulie, and Dayaan Cassiem created several delightful opportunities. Their efforts paid off, and South Africa got a penalty corner. Beauchamp Connor slipped into the goal with a powerful and precise shot.

In a post-match interview, Player of the Match Florent van Aubel said, "That was nice. I have been out for seven weeks, so it was good to be back. We worked hard to get the connections right. We struggled a bit today, but we got the six points, which is good. We have India and England, and we need to step up.