FIH Pro League: India script rare victory over heavyweights Australia

fih pro league: india script rare victory over heavyweights australia

FIH Pro League: India script rare victory over heavyweights Australia

KOLKATA: The Indian women’s hockey team grabbed their first win against Australia since the Tokyo Olympics as they beat the heavyweights 1-0 in FIH Pro League at Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela on Saturday evening.

After Tokyo, the two teams had met numerous times but Australia have always come out on top. Even during the Commonwealth Games semifinal, it was 1-1 after 60 minutes but Australia won the game via penalty shoot-outs in the end. But on Saturday, India held on to grab one of their most famous wins in recent times after Vandana Katariya scored the lone goal of the match in the 34th minute.

It was India’s second penalty corner of the match and Vandana had won it with a clever piece of play. Navneet, who took the first PC, took the hit once again. But rather than going for goal, she hit the ball towards the right of the target and Vandana dived full length to deflect the ball into the net. It was a lovely variation and took the Aussies by surprise and put a huge smile on Janneke Schopman’s face who was seen jumping with joy in the dugout.

It had been a tough couple of months for the women’s team after they failed to make it to the Paris Olympics and lost five of their six games in Pro League. This win coming on the back of their good show against the Dutch, will hopefully ease the pressure not only on the team but also on Schopman.

After Vandana’s goal, India won a couple more PCs towards the end of the third quarter and another in the final 15 but couldn’t convert either of them. They, however, did incredibly well to keep Australia from scoring the equaliser in the final quarter. The hosts will now look to wrap things up on a positive note against the US in their last home game of the tournament on Sunday.

Earlier, it was Australia who dominated the proceedings and won their first PC in the second minute itself but Monika did well to make a save on the line. Seven minutes into the game Alice Arnott hit the upright from close range.

Despite Australia’s relentless attacking, India didn’t sit back. They went forward with every opportunity and grabbed their first PC early in the second quarter which Navneet hit wide. It seemed the miss would be costly as the Australians upped the tempo after that and came close to scoring on numerous occasions.

But it was some good goalkeeping by Savita that kept the score goalless. Australia were relentless during that period and even won their second PC of the game but the Indian skipper was up to the task.

The Indian defenders were also impressive during those few minutes as they kept the Australians at bay. After absorbing the pressure, India hit back well with Lalremsiami connecting with Navneet on the right. Sadly the final shot from her went straight to the Australian goalkeeper.

However, they didn’t have to wait too long for the goal as Vandana found the net four minutes into the third quarter after Savita made another save off Australian captain Grace Stewart.

Meanwhile, in the other match of the day, China beat the US 2-0.

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