FIH Women's Hockey Pro League: Battling Indians go down 1-3 against defending champions the Netherlands
A valiant Indian side battled hard against defending champions the Netherlands in their second game of the Women's Hockey Pro League before going down 1-3 on Sunday, February 4.
The Dutch, who have yet to be defeated in the tournament, were stretched by a brave and enterprising Indian unit. The latter took the attack to the opposition while goalkeeper Savita Punia thwarted an array of goalbound shots.
The Indians, who lost 1-2 to China in their opening game, will face Australia in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday, February 7.
The World and Olympic champions got into the act right from the outset. Yibbi Jansen's lethal drag-flick went straight through Savita Punia's defence in the third minute of play.
The Dutch had scored 31 goals from five matches ahead of Sunday's match. They were put to the test by a young and determined home side at the Kalinga Stadium.
Janneke Schopman's chargers converted defence into attack. Navneet Kaur scored a peach of a goal from the edge of the circle to restore parity for her side in the ninth minute.
A shellshocked Netherlands team then conceded a penalty corner. Navneet missed the mark by a whisker before Pien Dicke hit the post early in the second quarter.
Fay Van der Elst managed to sprint ahead of Gurjit Kaur before scoring the second goal for the Netherlands in the 20th minute. The Indians were very much in the contest as both teams went in for the long breather with the visitors leading 2-1.
However, a defensive lapse from Udita, who was dispossessed just outside the circle, led to a penalty corner. It gave Yibbi Jansen the chance to give her side a two-goal lead in the 34th minute.
The speedy and relentless Netherlands strikers kept Savita Punia busy. Janneke Schopman decided to have the Indian captain guard the citadel for the entire 60 minutes with Bichu Devi on the bench.
Sunelita Toppo earned a short corner for the Indians in the 48th minute. A follow-up penalty corner came to nought with Gurjit Kaur's drag-flick being stopped by the Dutch defence.
The Indians were unable to make the most of a yellow card shown to Pien Sanders in the 50th minute. But they did manage to earn a PC which was very nearly deflected goalwards with seven minutes left on the clock.
How does the points table currently look at the Women's Hockey Pro League?
The Dutch lead the Women's Hockey Pro League standings by a huge margin having won all six of their matches thus far. Paul van Ass' team are perched atop the points table with 18 points.
The Chinese, who beat India before getting the better of Australia, have six points from two matches and currently occupy second place. Meanwhile, Argentina are third with five points from four games. Great Britain have a solitary point thanks to a goalless draw against Argentina after having played four matches without a win.
Belgium and Germany are yet to begin their 2023-24 Women's Hockey Pro League campaign and will do so later this month in Argentina.
India play Australia at the Women's Hockey Pro League on February 7. The Australians, who went down to China 0-3, will be keen to make amends. Meanwhile, India, who beat the Hockeyroos in the 2021 Olympic semifinals in Tokyo, would fancy their chances at home.