In the Women’s Asian Champions Cup, the Indian hockey team defeated Japan 2-0 in the semi-finals to reach the final. Navneet Kaur and Lalremsiamy scored for India and played a vital role in the team’s progression to the final. The Indian team will face the Chinese team in the final. The Chinese team defeated the Malaysian team 3-1 in the semifinals. In India’s match against Japan, no team could score in the first three quarters.
India gave up 16 penalty corners
In the 2nd minute of the fourth quarter, the Indian team received a penalty kick after Deepika was blocked by a Japanese defender. Navneet easily made the penalty kick. Five minutes before the final whistle, Lal Remsiami’s pinpoint pass from Sunelita’s right wing electrified the crowd gathered at the Bihar Sports Complex. The Japanese team got the only penalty corner kick in the 59th minute, but Indian goalkeeper Bhikhu Devi failed to convert the penalty. India took 16 corner kicks throughout the match but failed to score, which will be a worry for head coach Harendra Singh ahead of Sunday’s final against China.
India created scoring chances right from the start.
The Indian women controlled the ball most of the time and maintained control of the match. The Indian team created many scoring opportunities at the beginning of the game, but failed to score in the first three quarters. Captain Salima Tate had a great chance in the 10th minute, but she failed to catch the ball from the left wing. The next minute, the Indian team got its first penalty kick, but Deepika, who had scored ten goals in this tournament, failed to convert the corner kick.
Neha Goyal performs well
In the second quarter, the Indian team received three consecutive penalty corners in the 18th and 19th minutes, but Japanese goalkeeper Yu Kudo saved every fast-paced shot, which is worthy of praise. India’s experienced midfielder Neha Goyal performed well, picking up the ball in the box on several occasions and creating penalty kick opportunities. In the 20th minute, the Indian team got its sixth penalty kick opportunity. Deepika’s first shot was weak, and even Neha failed to score the ball after grabbing a rebound. In the next minute, India got another penalty kick opportunity, but Deepika failed again.
(Enter: PTI)
