India's key defender and first rusher Amit Rohidas will miss Tuesday's Olympic men's hockey semifinal against Germany after he was handed a one-match suspension following his red card against Great Britain in the quarterfinal.
This means India will have only 15 players available for the key clash, which is big set back for the eight-time Olympic champions.
"Amit Rohidas was suspended for one match for a breach of the FIH Code of Conduct which occurred during the India vs Great Britain match on August 4," a FIH official statement read.
"The suspension affects match No. 35 (India's semi-final match against Germany), where Amit Rohidas will not participate and India will play with a squad of 15 players only."
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Rohidas was sent off the pitch against Great Britain almost 40 minutes from the final hooter after his stick unintentionally hit a rival player on Sunday.
"We were in tense situation after Amit Rohidas got the red card" - Hockey India President
Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey felt India did a commendable job in saving the match after Rohidas' red card and that they had full confidence in Sreejesh about protecting the goals. He said, as quoted by IANS:
"We were in tense situation after Amit Rohidas got the red card, it shouldn't have happened as he didn't do it deliberately. We defended well in the match and saved the match. We had full confidence in Sreejesh that he would do well in the shootout. The team has reached the semifinal and it will be an important match. Our aim is to go for gold and perform well in the next match."
