JAKARTA: When the women’s hockey team will wake up on Saturday morning, they will collectively wonder about the exact moment in which they lost the Asian Games final and a direct ticket to the 2020 Olympics. With 17 seconds remaining for the final hooter, forward Vandana Katariya had a presentable chance to take the match into a shoot-out. After taking control of the loose ball six yards in front of goal, she connected cleanly with the shot. However Japanese custodian Megumi Kageyama put her body on the line to deflect the ball away from goal. A golden chance had been lost. 1-2 would remain 1-2. The possibility of gold — what would have been the first for them since the 1982 Asian Games — slipped to silver, their first since Bangkok in 1998.
It was, in essence, the carbon copy of the India men’s semifinal against Malaysia. The Japanese, who have struggled against India in the recent past (including copping a big 1-4 defeat at the Asian Champions Trophy in May), used the ball very intelligently.
While India lost their structure and did not finish off their chances, their counterparts were highly efficient inside India’s D, especially during penalty corners. The latter was how the World No 14 scored both their goals. Japan scored their first goal through Minami Shimizu in the 11th minute, before Motomi Kawamura scored two minutes before the start of the fourth quarter. Neha Goyal had restored parity in the 25th minute through a field goal, one of the few times her team showed incisiveness in front of goal. In the last quarter, Japan’s defensive experience came through. They wasted time like Spanish footballers, a sentiment both India’s coach and captain agreed with.
“They scored more than us and that really is the name of the game,” Sjoerd Marijne said after the match. “I think we created enough chances but not enough penalty corners. At this level, if you don’t convert your chances, you are bound to pay for it. And that’s what happened. Even in the last 20 seconds, we had a big chance. But we didn’t capitalise. Also credit to Japan for the way they managed the game in the last quarter. They showed good tactical awareness to keep the ball in the corners.” Rani Rampal, who has seen India lose in big matches in the last four months — Asian Champions Trophy (final), Commonwealth Games (semis) and World Cup (quarters) — refused to blame it on a mental block. “I don’t think we suffer from that, or anything like that. I think this was just a case of not putting away chances, and we paid for it. These things happen.”
While this will be a disappointment for the women’s team — they came to Jakarta as gold-medal favourites — the Dutchman said that they can be proud of what they have achieved this year.
“This has been a long summer for most of them. Most of their bodies are done for at least the next month. Now, this feels like a gold lost. But tomorrow morning, it will feel like a silver won. The senior members of the squad are disappointed. That conveys the kind of improvement they have made in a very short space of time.
“I know a few of the younger lot are smiling. But that’s because this has not been done in 20 years. It’s important to have some perspective.”While the 44-year-old agreed that this defeat had thrown a spanner in their plans for Olympic qualification, he said that they still possess the means to win a Tokyo berth. “This was our best way, to play one match and be there. Now it’ll be a lot harder. We have to play five or six matches to get there. But I know that we have the nous to get it done.” Next month, though, will be all about recovery and rest before the women’s team start their grind again.
swaroop@newindianexpress.com