Bengaluru: December 17: The Indian Junior Women’s squad has returned to India after effectively defending the Women’s Junior Asia Cup title in Muscat, Oman. In the final, India emerged victorious and lifted the coveted trophy once more, defeating heavyweights China 1-1 (3-2 SO).
Deepika, the star dragflicker, played a significant role in India’s title-winning campaign, finishing as the tournament’s leading scorer with 12 goals, five of which were scored from penalty corners.
In Pool A, which also included China, Malaysia, Thailand, and Bangladesh, India came in second. India dominated the Pool stage, defeating Bangladesh, Malaysia, and Thailand handily. With back-to-back hat-tricks to start the competition and 11 goals in the first four games, Deepika was the standout player during the Pool round. Deepika scored India’s lone goal in their 2-1 loss to China, which was their only tournament loss.
In the semi-final, India met Pool B champions Japan, who were playing at their best and had scored 38 goals in their previous four games. India easily defeated Japan 3-1, securing their place in the final with one goal each from Sakshi Rana, Mumtaz Khan, and Deepika.
A disappointing penalty kick in the second quarter gave China the first blood in the final. But Kanika Siwach’s game-winning equaliser in the third quarter gave India a comeback. India prevailed 3-2 in the penalty shootout to win the championship. Goalie Nidhi was the star of the show and helped her team defeat the Chinese with three pivotal saves in the shootout against Lihang Wang, Jingyi Li, and Dandan Zuo. India’s remarkable achievements in the Women’s Junior Asia Cup have also secured their spot in the FIH Junior World Cup 2025, which will be held in Chile.
After taking home the trophy, India’s top scorer, Deepika, expressed her happiness by saying, “I’m really happy that I was able to score as many goals, but it wouldn’t have been possible without the help of my teammates.” We wouldn’t have been able to win the title without the tremendous effort put out by every player in the camp. We had several penalty corners because of the other forwards, and I was able to turn them into goals.
She went on to say, “I am confident that some of the young players will build on the team’s success because they have amazing potential.”
Jyoti Singh, the captain, was thrilled with her team’s performance and led them to an amazing title defence. “I’m glad the team’s training efforts have finally paid off,” she remarked. We barely made a mistake during the competition, and I’m pleased of my teammates for their excellent play. It was difficult to play against China in the championship game, but we gave it our best on the field and brought the title home’.
“Deepika’s performance on the goals was excellent. Mumtaz Khan, Sunelita Toppo, and Kanika Siwach all performed admirably in the attack and helped Deepika score goals. Extremely pleased with the team’s performance thus far’.
