Games India : India notched up a hard-fought 2-1 win over Italy in women’s hockey tournament
India notched up a hard-fought 2-1 win over Italy to keep their title hopes alive at the Lal Bahadur Shastri four-nation women’s hockey tournament in New Delhi.
Their defensive strategy and missed chances in the first half spelt trouble for the hosts, who allowed the 19th ranked Italy to take a 1-0 lead through Valentina Quaranta’s 29th minute penalty corner conversion.
India got their acts together in the second half to score through Saba Anjum (48th) and Suman Bala (53rd) and collect three crucial points in their second game at the Shivaji Stadium.
After losing a couple of chances in the first 10 minutes, the dispirited hosts were outplayed by the physically stronger Italians.
The fumbling Indian eves could not match up to the Europeans’ fast-paced game and looked miserable in their bid to apply breaks on their rivals.
Italy got two back-to-back penalty corners and off the second, Valentina drew the first blood through a direct hit, much to the disappointment of the home fans.
Soon after, Daniela Possali got a golden chance to score with none but goalkeeper Marita Tirkey to beat. However, the Indian custodian dived to her right to foil the attempt.
In the second half, a desperate India resorted to an attacking combination by pushing one player up. They showed urgency in their game and initiated several raids to rattle the Italians.
After skipper Mamta Kharab spoilt two potential opportunities, the home side earned a couple of penalty corners.
In the 48th minute, a penalty corner push by Mamta could not be trapped properly. But Subhadra Pradhan, who was posted outside the ‘D’, quickly provided the back-up and the experienced Anjum shot home in a flash to draw parity.
Backed by the vociferous home crowd, the Indian wingers kept the Italian defenders on their toes and got three more short corners.
The fourth penalty corner brought more cheers for Mamta and her teammates as Suman Bala’s power-packed hit beat Italian custodian Paula Calvo to register the winning goal.