The Indian women’s hockey team made history by reaching the Olympics semi-finals for the first time. India qualified for the semi-final by defeating Australia 1-0.
The odds were totally against India in Tokyo Olympics as in world no.2 Australia, a mighty unbeaten opponent, awaited them.
But the Indians, determined to make a point, put in a great and brave effort to beat the Hockeyroos by a razor-thin margin. Gurjit Kaur, a drag-flicker, surprised the Australians by converting India’s lone penalty corner in the 22nd minute.
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In the 22nd minute of the game, Gurjit Kaur scored her first goal of the tournament to give India a 1-0 lead. Kaur produced a brilliant drag-flick to beat Australian keeper Rachael Lynch, giving India a 1-0 lead which was maintained till the end of the match.
Indian goalkeeper Savita Punia played a big role in India’s win and the Australians would be disappointed at not being able to convert any of the seven penalty corners. Rampal was also lauded for the way she performed in the quarter-final against Australia.
“Very happy with the win, everybody worked very hard for this win. We performed like one team and we are feeling so happy to have qualified for the semifinals. Thank you to all those who supported the Indian women’s team,” an elated Gurjit Kaur said after the match.
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“This team is like a family, including the coaching staff. Our entire country supports us and everybody’s prayers are with us.”
India’s best performance in the Olympics came way back in the 1980 Moscow Games where they finished fourth out of six teams.
In that edition of the Games, women’s hockey made its debut in the Olympics and the sport was played in a round-robin format with the top two teams qualifying for the final.
The Rani Rampal-led side will play Argentina in the semi-final on Wednesday.
(With inputs from ANI)
