Hockey Worlds: Spirited India women hold contenders China to a draw

Mumbai: At the final hooter, there were contrasting reactions in both dugouts. India chief coach Sjoerd Marijne led a wave of high-fives among his players and coaching staff while his Chinese counterpart Alyson Annan was stony-faced as she stood in a dugout filled with forlorn expressions.

The India women had just held China to a 2-2 draw in their opening Pool D clash at the hockey World Cup. The match held significance beyond the World Cup given that both the countries are expected to vie for the gold medal at the Asian Games next month with the title winner earning a direct berth for the 2028 LA Olympics.

But Sunday’s game at the Wagener Hockey Stadium in Amstelveen, Netherlands, was a match between an India team on the rebuild and a world No.4 China team that is a frontrunner for the title.

Three points at the end of the match would have been a wholesome bonus for India, for whom this match was a litmus test, to see where they stand against the 2024 Paris Olympics silver medallists.

What transpired in the opening exchanges may have been surprising, but not necessarily not on the cards. India women, who failed to qualify for Paris and were relegated from the Pro League but made their way back to the competition by winning the Nations Cup, were on the front foot.

The passes were accurate, the movements quick and threatening. And that one shot by Navneet Kaur, from an acute angle just inside the shooting circle, was as accurate as it could get.

Neha Goyal played in a short pass from the right flank and Navneet used the pace to hit it towards the goal first-time. The shot threaded the needle, evading three defenders, a teammate, and a diving Liu Ping in the Chinese goal to creep into the far post.

For all their recent disappointments, India were up inside eight minutes. Then they defended with discipline and control as China started to see more of the ball while searching for an equaliser.

An error of judgement by Shilpi Dabas – she pushed Zhong Jiaqi – gave the opponents a penalty stroke, which Zhang Ying converted to Savita’s left.

Still, India attacked with purpose and defended with discipline.

In the 25th minute, India’s other in-form player, Deepika Sehrawat, made it 2-1 with a fortuitous drag-flick that deflected off two Chinese players before flying past the goalkeeper into the net. This was Deepika’s seventh goal in her last six games.

China found their second equaliser in the 39th minute through a well-taken Ma Ning penalty corner, a drag-flick like Deepika’s. But they could not find the winner despite launching wave after wave of attacks.

The main reason for that was the spirit with which the Indians played. Navneet and Deepika may have go on the scoresheet, but there were performances all around the pitch that were worthy of recognition.

Nikki Pradhan made crucial interceptions, Sushila Chanu stood firm in defence, Lalremsiami – despite being hit by the ball – hassled and harried China’s defenders. Navneet often dropped back to help in defence, while Baljeet Kaur made a few important challenges.

These were individual performances that added to the collective show put up by a team that seems to be finding its spirit once again under the charge of the Dutch coach who led them to the fourth place at the Tokyo Olympics. In fact, India created two excellent chances on swift counters, but the sharp passes could not be capitalised on.

Holding China to a draw was no small feat.

“It’s better than a loss. We got a point and that’s very good for us,” Navneet told FIH after the match. “We tried our best and we played well, it was a good learning for us that if we score early, how to keep the lead.”

The Chinese test is over, for now, until they meet again in Japan at the Asian Games. This campaign, though, continues with a game against South Africa on Tuesday.

England sit at the top of the Pool D standings after their 4-0 victory over South Africa, while India and China are level on points in second place, with South Africa occupying fourth position.