With a 2-1 victory over the Republic of Korea in the championship game on Sunday in Kakamigahara, Japan, the Indian hockey team won the Women’s Junior Asia Cup 2023.
India has never previously won the Women’s Junior Asia Cup. India had already confirmed their attendance at the FIH Women’s Junior World Cup in Chile in 2023. Japan defeated China 2-1 to get to this year’s World Cup as the third team.
Women’s Junior Asia Cup
Annu and Neelam scored goals for India, whereas Seoyeon Park netted the lone goal for Korea. India got the game going by gaining a penalty corner in the first minute, but they were unable to take advantage of it. Korea, on the other hand, used counterattacks to seize control. Despite both teams playing offensive hockey, there were no goals in the opening period.
In the second quarter, Korea persisted in its strategy and put India on the defensive. However, Annu, who successfully executed a penalty shot, gave India the lead.
- India won the Women’s Junior Asia Cup, but missed FIH Women’s Junior World Cup, losing to Japan.
- India and Korea score goals, with no goals in the opening period.
- India wins Men’s Junior Asia Cup hockey championship against Pakistan.
India’s advantage, however, was short-lived as Seoyeon Park netted a field goal for Korea to tie the match. There were no additional goals scored in the second quarter, and both sides entered the halftime break with identical 1-1 scores.
As Korea maintained possession to begin the second half of the game, the Indian team resorted to counterattacks. The third quarter ended with a score of 2-1 in favor of the Indian team, and it paid off when Neelam successfully converted a penalty corner to put India in front.
India switched their attention to defense to preserve their advantage, and they managed the game’s tempo by maintaining possession throughout the fourth quarter. On the other side, Korea’s desperate attempts to score an equalizer resulted in forced mistakes and misplaced passes. In the end, India remained steadfast and adhered to their plan to win the title match 2-1.
India also triumphed in the Men’s Junior Asia Cup hockey competition earlier this month after defeating Pakistan in the championship game.
