Indian women's hockey team settle for silver at Asian Games
The Indian women's hockey team kept expectations on a high when they entered the finals of the Asian Games for the first time since 1998 by defeating world No. 11 China.
Today, with a silver medal to its name, the Indian contingent has successfully placed India on the global women's hockey map.
India faced lost to formidable opponent Japan. A few minutes in the game, the two countries were neck-to-neck with 1-1.
Here's how the game went. India went down 1-2 after the two were locked at 1-1 at half time.
Japan took the lead in the first quarter courtesy Shimizu before Neha Goyal drew with Japan in the second quarter.
In the third quarter, Motomi put Japan ahead in the final 15 minutes to win their first Asian Games gold.
Japan played a brilliant defensive structure; Mayumi Ono keeping the side together says Hindustan Times.
The Indian Hockey team was led by Rani Rampal. The Haryana girl who plays as a forward was, at 15, the youngest player in the national team for the 2010 World Cup. Under her captaincy, India also won the Asia Cup in 2017. Rani also has over 200 caps, says News 18.
Also read: Meet Rani Rampal, the cart-puller's daughter who's now captaining the Indian hockey team
In the semi-finals, India defeated China 1-0, to qualify for the final against Japan. The winner of today's match would also qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. India was chasing for the gold, after its historic win in 1982. It, however, won a bronze in 2014 but this win be a gamechanger in the players' lives.
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