Drag flicker Gonzalo Peillat justified his newfound German citizenship with a fine hat-trick as Germany shocked World No. 1 Australia 4-3 in the first semi-final at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Argentina’s Rio Olympics hero, Peillat switched nationality to Germany last February after a fall out with the Argentine team management.

In fact, so interesting was this match that Team India, which is 400km away at Rourkela here, presumably did not turn up for their scheduled 6:30pm practice session at the Birsa Munda Stadium as it coincided with the closing moments of the seven-goal thriller. That they didn’t inform the few mediapersons, who showed up to cover their training, is a different issue.