Hockey
Women's Hockey World Cup: India v/s China - Preview, India Squad, When to Watch, Live Stream
All you need to know about India's clash against China in the 2022 Women's Hockey World Cup.
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 2022 Women's Hockey World Cup in their second game against China on Tuesday.
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 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 ninth-minute 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 the Tokyo Olympics. Savita, as usual, was brilliant at the goal, making a couple of fine saves with her quick reflexes.
However, India was found wanting in the penalty corner conversion as they could score just once from the seven PCs they got, with Vandana Katariya getting the equalizer from a rebound in the 28th minute.
India also created a lot of chances against England but the forward line failed to utilize most of them, barring the equalizer. In the 56th minute, Sharmila Devi wasted a golden opportunity as she failed to get her stick on to a fine pass from a teammate.
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 forward line, consisting of the likes of Vandana, Lalremsiami, and Sharmila.
Going by form and rankings, world number eight India will start as a favorite 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.
India Squad
Goalkeepers: Savita Punia (captain), Bichu Devi Kharibam
Defenders: Deep Grace Ekka (vice-captain), 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
Schedule
The Women's Hockey World Cup clash between India and China is expected to start at 8pm IST on Tuesday.
Where to Watch?
You can catch all the LIVE action from the 2022 Women's Hockey World Cup in the Star Sports Network.
LIVE Streaming
Since Star Sports are the official broadcasters, you can also LIVE stream the 2022 Women's Hockey World Cup on Disney+Hotstar.