Confident India face England test
Buoyed by Asia Cup and Commonwealth Games show, India keen to impress
NEW DELHI: The only time the women’s hockey team shone at the world cup was when they finished fourth at the inaugural edition in 1974, after losing to West Germany at Mandelieu, France in the third-place match.
Not only did they beat the Netherlands — unthinkable now — they also thrashed Spain. Some 44 years later, and having competed in five world cups in between, there is hope that Dutch coach Sjoerd Marijne’s wards might well come close — or even achieve that position — in the current edition, which kicks off in London with India taking on the hosts and reigning Olympic champions in the opener.
Going by rankings and points, there is a massive gulf between India, competing in their seventh World Cup, and England. While the hosts are No 2 in the world behind the Dutch with 1823 points, India have barely managed to cross the 1000-mark as per the December 2017 rankings. The Dutch are in a different zone altogether with 2165 points. But going by the enthusiasm and the soundbytes emerging from the Indian camp, they seem to be confident as ever ahead of the clash.
Their confidence springs from the fact that the team led by Rani Rampal won the Asia Cup at Gifu, Japan in 2017 and the skipper was quick to warn rival teams that India shouldn’t be taken lightly after their continental triumph and their heartening show at the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast where they lost to Australia in the semis before capitulating to a 0-6 defeat at the hands of England in the bronze-medal contest. The crushing loss to England was an aberration as India had caused one of the biggest upsets in Gold Coast by defeating England in the group stages.
That 0-6 humiliation apart, India did give a good account of itself after the 2016 Rio Games where they finished sixth in only their second appearance at the quadrennial games after the 1980 Moscow Olympics.
If India are to give a good account of themselves in London, then Rani Rampal and defender Deepika Thakur will have to be the guiding force as they are the only two to have tasted the world cup flavour – Rani as a 15-year-old in 2010 and Deepika, in 2006 and 2010. India are in a relatively easy Pool B with England, Ireland (World No 16) and the United States (No 7). But they would first have to cross the England hurdle before they meet their easier opponents on July 26 and July 29, respectively.
However Rani said on the eve of the match that being the hosts the pressure would be on England. She said that her teammates --- 16 of who will be playing in the world cup for the first time --- will carry forward the confidence of the Commonwealth Games.
In her maiden world cup appearance, in 2010 at Argentina, Rani came up with a stellar performance scoring seven goals although India finished ninth. A lot would be expected from the skipper, who over the last couple of years has been the guiding force behind India’s best-ever ranking in the world. India can draw inspiration from the 2002 Manchester CWG showing where they defeated England for their maiden title.