FIH Pro League: Indian Women's Hockey Team relegated after 2-3 loss to China

Berlin, June 29 (IANS) Indian Women's Hockey Team ended their FIH Hockey Pro League 2024-25 campaign with a 2-3 loss against China here in Berlin on Sunday. Though it was an inspired performance by India today, it was simply not enough to get the better of China.

It was goals by Ying Zhang (19', 30') and Xu Wenyu (53') that helped China win while Sunelita Toppo (9') and Rujuta Dadaso Pisal (38') scored for India.

This was the last match of the season with Netherlands finishing on top, Argentina finishing second and Belgium finishing third in the league while China have finished fourth in the points table. India have finished last and will be relegated and will need to play the FIH Nations Cup to earn their place again in the prestigious FIH Pro League.

Though it was China who got on to a good start with an early PC, India made headway in the 9th minute when a pass from Neha Goyal to Sunelita Toppo led to a fine goal. The youngster from Odisha picked up the pass well, runs up wide to create space and got a clear shot on goal. Two minutes later, China threatened to equalise when they won a PC but India defended well.

It didn't take too long for China to find an equaliser. In the 18th minute, China won a PC - though there was no goal from this attempt, Deng Qiuchan was hit on the face by Indian defender Manisha Chauhan while she was trying to clear the ball. Quichan had to be taken off the field, and the on-field umpire handed China a penalty stroke which was appealed by India.

The video umpire did uphold India's review and awarded a PC to China, which they promptly converted through Ying Zhang. Building momentum in their attack, China fetched another PC towards the end of the second quarter. Zhang was spot-on yet again as she added another goal to her name, ensuring China were in the lead.

India had their chance to equalise in the 37th minute when they won their first PC of the game. While the first PC was blocked by the Chinese defenders, there was a back stick. Though the on-field umpire missed it, India took a successful referral and were awarded another PC. This time, Navneet Kaur took the shot and tried a fantastic variation. The experienced Kaur passed the ball to Rujuta who was standing on the right flank. She got a perfect deflection to level the score. India showcased an inspired performance today, put pressure on China, creating potential chances in the circle and even found success.

China, meanwhile, began the final quarter with a PC after a back-stick foul by India. This one was well-defended by Bichu Devi, India's goalie. Bichu was kept busy in the following minutes as China won two more PCs but Devi was on par with her saves. A relentless China ended up finding success in the 53rd minute when Xu Wenyu converted this one through a PC. India giving away soft PCs has been a concern in both the matches against China. The 3-2 lead put China in a good position to finish well.

"This Pro League we played attacking hockey. We need to continue to build on it. We have the World Cup qualifier coming up and our aim will be to do well there," stated Salima Tete after the match.

--IANS

aaa/