India women’s national field hockey team began their campaign in the FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup Qualifiers with an impressive victory on Sunday. India defeated Uruguay women’s national field hockey team 4–0 at the G. M. C. Balayogi Hockey Stadium.
Playing in front of their home crowd, the Indian team started the match strongly and quickly took control of the game. The hosts dominated possession, holding the ball for around 59% of the time, and constantly pushed forward in search of an early goal.
Despite their strong attacking play, India struggled to find the right final pass during the early stages of the match. Uruguay’s defence remained solid and worked hard to block India’s attempts. Because of this, the first quarter of the game ended without any goals.
India came close to scoring during the first quarter when Udita made an impressive run along the left side of the field. Her effort created a chance in front of the goal, and the rebound appeared to cross the line, leading to loud celebrations from the players and fans.
However, the celebrations did not last long. After reviewing the play, the referee ruled out the goal, stating that the ball had gone above the allowed board height before entering the goal. As a result, the score remained level.
Even though the early goal was disallowed, India continued to attack and kept putting pressure on the Uruguayan defence. Their persistence eventually paid off as the team found their rhythm and went on to score four goals, securing a comfortable victory.
The win gives India a confident start to the tournament and strengthens their chances of progressing further in the qualifiers for the FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup.