Nagoya: India continued their dominant run in the women’s hockey competition at the Asian Games on Wednesday as Deepika Sehrawat scored a record nine goals in a single match during a 20-1 demolition of Thailand in Pool B.
The victory was India’s third consecutive win in the competition and strengthened their position at the top of Pool B. Deepika was the star of the contest, converting all nine of her penalty-corner attempts as India maintained their commanding start to the tournament.
Deepika scored in the second, eighth, ninth, 24th, 33rd, 36th, 39th, 51st and 57th minutes. Her remarkable haul took her tournament tally to 20 goals after three matches.
Deepika leads India’s goal rush
Deepika’s precision from penalty corners gave Thailand little respite as India repeatedly exposed gaps in the defence.
Navneet Kaur also enjoyed a prolific outing, scoring four goals in the fourth, 29th, 35th and 51st minutes. Rutuja Dadaso Pisal completed a hat-trick with goals in the 10th, 11th and 47th minutes.
Neha Goyal, Lalremsiami, Sakshi Rana and captain Salima Tete were also on the scoresheet. Goyal scored in the 19th minute, Lalremsiami in the 26th, Sakshi in the 29th and Salima in the 45th.
Thailand’s only goal came in the 57th minute through Supansa Samanso, who converted a penalty-corner variation.
India had already established a huge 11-0 advantage by half-time before continuing their dominance after the break.
India maintain perfect Pool B record
The Indian team controlled the contest from the opening whistle, with Deepika immediately making her presence felt from penalty corners.
Rutuja was particularly effective in the attacking third, repeatedly finding space to deflect passes into the goal. Lalremsiami and Navneet added field goals, while Navneet also converted a penalty stroke in the 29th minute.
The result followed India’s earlier emphatic victories over Uzbekistan and Indonesia. India had opened their campaign with a 19-0 win over Uzbekistan before defeating Indonesia 17-1.
The Indian women’s team, who finished fifth at the recent FIH World Cup in the Netherlands and Belgium, have carried that momentum into the Asian Games.
Japan next for India
India will face hosts Japan in their next Pool B match on Friday.
With three wins from three matches, India currently lead Pool B ahead of Japan. The top teams from each pool will advance to the semi-finals of the 12-team women’s hockey competition.
The clash against Japan will provide India with a stronger test after three highly one-sided victories, but Deepika’s extraordinary scoring form has given the team plenty of momentum heading into the next fixture.