FIH Hockey Pro League: India women draws 2-2 with Argentina, suffers shootout defeat
After a gruelling 2–2 draw, the Indian Women's Hockey team missed out on the bonus point, going down 0–2 to Argentina in the shootout at the FIH Hockey Pro League 2024/25 match at the Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre in London on Wednesday.
Navneet Kaur and Deepika scored in the third and fourth quarters, respectively, pulling India back from a two-goal deficit. This came after Agustina Gorzelany's brace (27', 37') had given Argentina a comfortable lead.
Neither of the experienced sides managed to test the goalkeepers in the opening quarter. Argentina's high press restricted the Indian attack, but India found space through quick stick work and sharp passing, frequently looking to fire the ball into the circle. Sharmila Devi made a promising run into the circle early on but was forced out of bounds by the Argentine defence, while Sunelita Toppo made a shrewd interception and surged forward, only to see the ball go out of play.
Despite Argentina's organised defensive structure, India ended the first half with nearly twice as many circle entries. In the second quarter, Argentina's Victoria Miranda made a powerful injection into the final third from midfield, but a crucial touch from Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke took care of the threat.
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Argentina converted its first penalty corner of the night when Gorzelany struck cleanly to give her side a 1–0 lead in the 27th minute.
The third quarter began with India under sustained pressure in its own half. Argentina's wide play stretched the Indian defence, but India managed to win its fourth penalty corner in the 35th minute. Manisha's thunderous strike was blocked by Valentina Raposo, and Navneet followed up with another powerful shot just seconds later but was once again denied by Cosentino.
Argentina continued to make the most of its set-pieces, with Gorzelany converting yet another penalty corner in the 37th minute to double its lead. Victoria Granatto nearly made it 3–0 from close range, but Indian goalkeeper Savita produced a courageous save to keep India in contention.
Deepika nearly pulled one back with an electric shot from just outside the circle, but Cosentino reacted sharply to parry the ball away.
India was finally rewarded for its persistence in the final quarter. In the 50th minute, Navneet made a skillful run after receiving the ball on the edge of the circle. She beat a defender and smashed it into the back of the net to bring India back into the contest at 1–2.
India pushed forward in search of an equaliser in the closing minutes and earned a penalty corner with less than five minutes on the clock. Deepika was on target yet again, scoring from the set-piece to level the score and complete India's fightback.
Following the 2-2 deadlock at full time, both teams competed in a shootout for the bonus point. India couldn't find the back of the net while Brisa Bruggesser and Sophia Cairo scored against Savita.
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