Climb to 6th position in FIH World Ranking

Indian Women's Hockey Team led by experienced custodian Savita Punia registered a resounding 4-0 (HT 1-0) triumph over reigning champions Japan en-route their second Women's Asian Champions Trophy crown at the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Astroturf Hockey Stadium, Ranchi, Jharkhand.

Forward Sangita Kumari (17') opened the scoring with a field goal past Japan's goalkeeper Eika Nakamura, after latching on a through pass from mid-fielder Neha Goyal in an action packed second quarter. The hosts were lucky to escape with a video review soon after Shiho Kobayakawa had appeared to score a goal five minutes later, but disallowed as the ball had struck her the forward’s hand before trickling in the net. India's defence latter stood tall in the face of three consecutive penalty corners earned by Japan in the remainder of time which ensured a crucial one goal cushion at the half time.  

Change of ends saw India commence the third quarter with more aggression and relentless determination to extend the lead, only to be thwarted by the agile formidable defensive strength of the visitors. Not to be deterred by the challenges, India's endeavors to extend the margin bore fruits in the fourth and final quarter, with three contrasting goals in the space of 14 minutes. After a couple of missed penalty corners in succession, India made the best in the third through an indirect conversion by Neha (46’) off a hard pass from her defender Deep Grace Ekka to extend the lead to 2-0. Tokyo 2020 Olympian Lalremsiami Hmarzote further too sounded the board (57’) three minutes before the final hooter after a successful conversion of a save off a Deepika’s attempt from another penalty corner.  The third goal came at the backdrop of a well saved penalty stroke five minutes earlier by her captain Savita with her stick on her left after Japan’s Kana Urata’s attempt. Central Railway’s ace forward Vandana Katariya (60’) who has been the part of the current Indian outfit for over a decade (from Junior World Cups to Olympics), too made the best of home support by scoring the fourth in the final seconds of the match after a diving pass by mid-fielder Salima Tete much to the delight of her teammates and her Dutch coach Janneke Schopman.

Zhong Jiaqi (China)

In recognition of their exceptional title-winning performance, Hockey India declared a reward of Rs 3.00 Lakhs for each member of the Indian Women's Hockey Team and Rs 1.50 Lakhs for each member of the support staff. On the individual front too Indian forward Sangita Kumari was the highest goal scorer with 6 goals in the tournament, won the ‘Rising Star of the Tournament Award’ one behind Tournaments Highest Goal scorer Zhong Jiaqi (China). Indian Captain and Custodian Savita Punia won the ‘Women Leader of the Tournament’ Award, Mid- fielder Salima Tete won the ‘Jharkhand Player of the Tournament’ Award, and Deepika won the ‘Fan Choice Award for Best Goal’. India also scored a whopping 27 goals in the seven games they played during the tournament and went on to clinch the ‘Maximum Team Goals’ Award as well. 

The Indian Women's Hockey Team which remained undefeated in the tournament in the process regained its best-ever sixth place ranking in the world with 2368.83 points after the recent title success in the Asian Champions Trophy and Bronze at the Hangzhou Asian Games 2023 earlier. The Netherlands continues to be the top ranked team with 3422.40 points, followed by Australia at second place with 2817.73 points and Argentina at third with 2766.90 points. The other two teams ranked above India are Belgium at fourth with 2608.77 points and Germany at fifth with 2573.72 points.  India will once again be in action at the same venue in Ranchi in less than three months at the Women’s FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers, scheduled to be held from 13th to 19th January next year.

Speaking on the morale boosting win, Captain Savita Punia highlighted the importance of the success which came in the backdrop of their semi-final loss to the host China in the recent Asian Games and said “We came with a target and wanted nothing but the Gold medal here, especially since it was being held in India for the first time. We always take it one game at a time in every tournament. This time, the whole team had a point to prove and I am glad we were able to do so”. India faced China, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and Thailand in the round-robin stage of the tournament and won all five games to finish on top of the table with 15 points. In the Semi-Final, India defeated Korea 2-0 en-route to the summit clash against reigning champions Japan.

She further added “The team played a lot of attacking hockey. We took the initiative as we have the players suited for it and everyone gave their best to make sure we stand on top of the podium. The aim has always been to bring our performances from practice to the pitch. Now, for the Women’s FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers in less than three months and we will come back and perform to the best of our abilities.”

Chief Coach Janneke Schopman expressed appreciation for the performance and mentality of the team throughout the tournament, and added, “As a team, we played very well and the intent to be better was seen in every player. We played some scintillating hockey. I am really pleased with the team's decision-making on the field and players sense of ownership. The players chose to try variations on penalty corners depending on the situation. In addition, different players scored goals at crucial times backed with some solid defence and that is reflected by the fact that we conceded only two goals from the penalty corner and no field goals. We know we are good enough to qualify for the Paris Olympics and now it is just a matter of showing that you can perform at the same level again in the Women’s FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers in  couple of months”.

Hockey India President Padma Dr. Dilip Tirkey who congratulated the Indian Women's Hockey Team on their title success and for reclaiming their best ever ranking, said, It is a testament to the hard work and sacrifices they have made in their careers so far. The aim is to break into the top three with time and this serves as a good indicator that the team is on the rise. With Peter Haberl also joining the setup as a mental conditioning coach I am confident that the team will go from strength to strength and outdo themselves in the near future.”

In the Bronze medal match, China defeated South Korea 2-1 to secure the third position. Yi Chen (3’) and Tiyantaiyan Lou (47’) scored field goals on either side of the half for the winners. Earlier Sujin An (38’) scored the consolation goal for the losers. Malaysia finished in the fifth position, and Thailand last in the six team tournament.

Earlier in the semi-final match riding on two first half goals by Salima Tete (11') and Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke (19'), host India defeated South Korea by a margin of 2-0, while Japan made amends for their narrow loss to China in the league phase by registering a hard fought 2-1 win over China in the first semis. Trailing by Luo Tiantian (11') first field half goal, Japan coached by former Indian star men’s goal keeper and two times Olympian Jude Felix made a strong come with two successful penalty corner conversions by Urata Kana (34') and Suzuki Miyu (44') for a place in the final.

Indian Women’s Hockey Winning Squad: Savita Punia (Captain & Goal Keeper), Deep Grace Ekka (Vice-Captain), Nikki Pradhan, Udita, Ishika Chaudhary, Nisha, Salima Tete, Neha Goyal, Navneet Kaur, Vandana Katariya, Lalremsiami Hmarzote, Sangita Kumari, Deepika, Bichu Devi Kharibam (Goal Keeper), Sonika, Monika,  Jyoti, Baljeet Kaur, Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke and Sharmila Devi