Rajgir (Bihar), 17 November (IANS). The Indian women’s hockey team defeated Japan 3-0 in their last match of the group stage of the Women’s Asian Champions Trophy 2024 on Sunday. The defending champions topped the table without losing a single point and are set to face fourth-placed Japan in the semi-finals on November 19.
Japan displayed excellent defense in the first half of the game, but goals from Navneet Kaur (37th minute) and Deepika (47th minute and 48th minute) in the second half ensured India’s victory. This was India’s last league round match. With five wins from five matches, India top the table with the most points.
India started the game slowly and forced Japan’s attacking line to consistently lag behind. India had more possession of the ball in Japan’s half. India got its first big chance when Deepika fouled Japan inside the circle six minutes before the end of the first quarter and India got a penalty corner, although it could not be converted into a goal.
Japan started the second quarter with more ball control and tried to penetrate India’s shooting circle, but failed to penetrate the defense. Both the teams made several attempts to gain space in the circle, but could not create any chance to score a goal. Some chances were created but there was no success in scoring goals.
The Japanese defense made several close calls. As the half approached the end, Japan took the initiative and pushed India back into the shooting circle, but the Indian defense held firm and the score remained 0-0.
No goals were scored in the first half but India scored three goals in the second half. After this, India took complete control of the match and ensured to remain unbeaten in the group stage.
–IANS
AMJ/AKJ
