Their defensive prowess on display in the 1-1 draw against Olympic bronze medallist England, India would look to plug holes in the attacking department and register their first win of the FIH Women's Hockey World Cup 2022 in their second game against China on Tuesday. (More Hockey News)
The Indians produced a superlative defensive performance, spearheaded by skipper and goalkeeper Savita Punia, in the drawn game against England in their opening Pool B match on Sunday. The India women vs China women hockey match can be seen live in India.
The likes of vice-captain Deep Grace Ekka, Nikki Pradhan, Gurjit Kaur and Udita dished out an excellent performance, denying England a single penalty corner in the entire 60 minutes. Their only blemish was the goal they conceded when Isabella Petter neatly deflected in a pass from outside the 'D'.
Barring that, it was a near-perfect effort from the Indian backline against England, who fielded almost the same set of players from the Great Britain side that featured in Tokyo Olympics. Savita, as usual, was brilliant at the goal, making a couple of fine saves with her quick reflexes.
However, India were found wanting in the penalty corner conversion as they could score just once from the seven PCs they got, with Vandana Katariya getting the equaliser from a rebound in the 28th minute.
India also created a lot of chances against England but the forwardline failed to utilise most of them, barring the equaliser. In the 56th minute, Sharmila Devi wasted a golden opportunity as he failed to get her stick on to a fine pass from a team-mate.
The Indians would look to address their attacking woes and beat world number 13 China, who held New Zealand to a 2-2 draw in the other Pool B match on Sunday. Chief coach Janneke Schopman would be eyeing a more clinical performance from the forwardline, consisting of the likes of Vandana, Lalremsiami and Shamila.
Going by form and rankings, world number eight India will definitely start as favourites against China but complacency is something the Savita-led side would look to avoid. It was India who came out on top in the last two meetings between the two sides.
India had thrashed China 7-1 in their first outing in the FIH Pro League tie before winning the second match of the double-header 2-1 in Muscat, Oman. In the other Pool B match on Tuesday, England will face New Zealand.
Head-To-Head
India are slightly ahead of China when it comes to head-to-head records. Out of 21 matches, India have won 11 compared to China’s nine. Only one match ended in a draw.
When Is IND-W vs CHN-W, FIH Hockey Women's World Cup 2022, Match?
The India vs China Pool B match will be played on July 5 (Tuesday) at the Wagener Hockey Stadium in Amstelveen from 8 PM IST/4:30 PM local.
How To Watch IND-W vs CHN-W, FIH Hockey Women's World Cup 2022, Live?
Star Sports First and Star Sports First HD will live telecast the India women vs China women, FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup 2022 match. Live streaming of India vs China match will be available on Disney+ Hotstar platform on all android and apple devices.
India Squad Vs China
Goalkeepers: Savita Punia (c), Bichu Devi Kharibam; Defenders: Deep Grace Ekka (vc), Gurjit Kaur, Nikki Pradhan, Udita; Midfielders: Nisha, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Monika, Neha, Jyoti, Navjot Kaur, Sonika, Salima Tete; Forwards: Vandana Katariya, Lalremsiami, Navneet Kaur, Sharmila Devi.
Replacement Players: Akshata Abaso Dhekale, Sangita Kumari.
Head Coach: Janneke Schopman
