With a commanding 3-1 victory over Chile in Valencia, Spain, India’s women hockey team got off to a great start in their campaign at the FIH Women’s Nations Cup 2022. Sangita Kumari (3′), Sonika (11′), and Navneet Kaur all scored goals, and Fernanda Villagran (44′) added another for Chile.
India got off to a strong start in the opening period. This made it plain to their opponents what they intended to do.
They utilised a sound tactical approach and rotated the ball precisely to identify openings early on in the game. In the third minute of the game, Sangita Kumari. She was in fine form, scored as a result of their efforts.
Vandana Katariya, an experienced forward, set up the goal with a fantastic tackle towards the right flank and a pass to Sangita. She made no mistakes in beating the Chilean goalie.
Amazing assist from India’s team
Sangita provided Sonika with a beautiful assist in the 11th minute to increase India’s advantage to 2-0. Sonika, who was standing on the left side, managed to deflect her attack perfectly.
India began the third quarter on the offensive after the second quarter ended with no goals. This time, Neha Goyal was the one who opened up the scoring when she intercepted an overhead pass and helped Navneet score India’s third goal.
India gained a sizable lead in the second half of the game thanks to this goal in the 32nd minute.
The Indian defence, meanwhile, maintained control without allowing any goals. Nevertheless, Chile did able to sneak one in in the 44th minute via a penalty corner taken by Fernanda Villagran.
India attempted to make up for the defensive miscue that resulted in a penalty corner goal during the final quarter. By playing with skill, Vandana, Sangita, and Navneet produced some excellent scoring possibilities in the defensive zone. Natalia Salvador, the goaltender for Chile, performed a superb job of stopping Indian attackers from scoring, which led to a 3-1 final score.
Sonika was named player of the game for her outstanding performance.
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