Amstelveen: The Indian women’s hockey team advanced to the second round of the FIH World Cup after being held to a goalless draw by England in their final Pool D match here on Thursday, surviving a dozen penalty corners and late pressure.
India, who needed only a draw to progress, finished second in the pool with one win and two draws from three matches. China topped the group after beating South Africa 5-1 earlier in the day.
The result, however, masked a below-par performance from India, who struggled with passing, ball control and penalty-corner execution. They earned six penalty corners but failed to convert any, with Deepika and Navneet Kaur unable to make their opportunities count.
India’s goalkeepers Savita Punia and Bichhu Devi stood out, particularly as England earned as many as 11 penalty corners during the match.
Bichhu produced the crucial save with just 30 seconds remaining, diving to her left to deny England and preserve India’s qualification. India and China will carry one point each in the second round.
India started aggressively and earned three penalty corners in the opening 15 minutes. Their first chance came in the fourth minute when Sunelita sent the injection, but Navneet’s attempt appeared to have gone in off Ishika’s stick, resulting in the goal being disallowed.
Navneet’s attempt from India’s second penalty corner went wide before Deepika failed to find the target with the third.
England responded with counter-attacks and earned their first penalty corner in the 10th minute. Sunelita produced an excellent save to deny Sophie Hamilton’s drag-flick, while Jyoti cleared the danger.
India came close again in the 21st minute when Navneet found captain Salima Tete, who played Ishika into the circle, but the chance went begging.
Lalremsiami earned India’s fourth penalty corner in the 24th minute, but her powerful flick was kept out by England goalkeeper Miriam Pritchard with her right foot.
England missed two penalty corners of their own before Howard was shown a yellow card late in the second quarter, leaving them with 10 players for five minutes. India, though, could not exploit the numerical advantage.
The third quarter saw England take control and put sustained pressure on the Indian defence.
India earned an early penalty corner but failed to convert, while Savita came up with a series of important saves as England repeatedly threatened from set pieces.
England earned three successive penalty corners in the 43rd minute, but Savita’s experience and the defensive work of Sakshi kept India in the game.
England continued to find gaps in the Indian defence and earned their eighth penalty corner in the 45th minute, with Salima making a crucial save.
The pressure continued in the final quarter. England earned a penalty corner in the 50th minute, but India lost their referral. Another penalty corner followed soon after, only for Bichhu to make the save and Navneet to clear the rebound.
With time running out, England removed their goalkeeper and threw everything forward in search of the winner.
India survived the late onslaught, with Bichhu’s last-gasp save ensuring the draw and their passage into the second round.
For coach Sjoerd Marijne, the performance will nevertheless be a concern as India will need to improve significantly in the knockout phase.
