India lose 1-4 to China, miss out on direct women's hockey World Cup berth
Hangzhou (China), Sep 14 (PTI): The Indian women's hockey team faltered when it mattered the most, losing 1-4 to China in the final of Asia Cup to miss out on direct qualification for next year's World Cup, here on Sunday.
India drew the first blood through a penalty corner conversion by Navneet Kaur in the very first minute itself before China came into their own, scoring through Zixia Ou (21st minute), Hong Li (41st), Meirong Zou (51st) and Jiaqi Zhong (53rd) to win their third title in tournament and secure their passage to the 2026 World Cup, to be held in Belgium and Netherlands.
India got their first scoring chance within 39 seconds of the start of the match in the form of a penalty corner and Navneet was on target to hand her side an early lead.
Three minutes later, China had a bright chance to draw level when they earned back-to-back penalty corners, but the Indians defended brilliantly.
Stunned by the early goal, China went on the offensive and mounted continuous raids on the Indian half, but the Salima Tete-led side held its ground stoutly.
The Chinese kept up their relentless pressure on the Indian citadel and earned another set of penalty corners two minutes into the second quarter but failed to breach the resolute opposition defence.
China created chances after chances, keeping the ball almost in the Indian circle but were unable to find the equaliser.
The home team's relentless pressure finally paid off as it secured the equaliser in he 21st minute through a penalty corner conversion by Zixia Ou.
The equaliser seemed to have lifted the morale of China as they continuously pushed for the lead, keeping the India defence under tremendous pressure. However, both the teams went into half-time break locked at 1-1.
China, though, were the more dominant side in the first half.
India switched gears after the change of ends and played attacking hockey, albeit without much success as the Chinese defence was at its best, keeping the ball away from their circle.
Meanwhile, China's persistent attacks finally paid dividends when Hong Li scored a fine field goal from a counter attack four minutes from the third quarter.
Trailing by a goal, the Indians, ranked ninth in the world, pressed hard for the all-important equaliser in the fourth and final quarter but failed to breach the Chinese defence.
The Chinese extended their lead by pumping in two more goals in a span of two minutes to take the tie away from India and secure their title.
In the 51st minute Meirong Zou scored from a field effort and then Jiaqi Zhong added another field goal two minutes later to take a comfortable lead.
China had earlier won the Asia Cup in 1989 in Hong Kong and 2009 in Bangkok.
India were done in by the subdued performance of their strike force in the final as the likes of Mumtaz Khan, Lalremsiami, and Sunelita Toppo failed to rise to the occasion after decent outings in the earlier matches.
India will now have to go through the World Cup Qualifiers to seal their place in the top global event.
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BJP urges compensation, aid after eight Karnataka devotees killed in Andhra road accident
Bengaluru (PTI): BJP leaders on Thursday urged the state government to coordinate with authorities in Andhra Pradesh to ensure prompt treatment for the injured and to provide assistance, including adequate compensation, to the families of victims from Karnataka after a road accident in Kurnool district claimed at least eight lives.
Among those killed were five women, and 10 others were injured when a Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) collided with a tanker in Mantralayam in Kurnool district on Thursday, police said.
The accident occurred when devotees travelling to Mantralayam for the darshan of Sri Raghavendra Swamy were involved in the crash. The vehicle, carrying nearly 20 passengers, rammed into a tanker.
BJP leaders stated that some of the victims were from Chikkamagaluru district in Karnataka.
Taking to the social media platform ‘X’, Karnataka BJP leader B Y Vijayendra expressed deep shock over the accident.
He said that eight devotees from the state, who were on their way for darshan at the Mantralayam temple, had lost their lives, calling it extremely heartbreaking that devotees heading for divine darshan met such an untimely end.
“While conveying my deepest condolences to the families of those who have perished in this tragedy, I pray that the injured recover fully and regain their health as soon as possible,” he said.
“I urge the state government to immediately get in touch with the Andhra Pradesh government and take appropriate steps to ensure that the injured receive necessary treatment without delay. The state government must respond promptly on humanitarian grounds, including providing the required assistance,” Vijayendra added.
Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Assembly, R Ashoka, also conveyed his condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in this tragic incident.
“I pray that the injured recover swiftly. The state government must immediately provide appropriate compensation to the families of the deceased and take necessary steps to ensure the injured receive the required medical treatment,” he said in his post on ‘X’.
BJP MP and former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai also expressed condolences to the families of the deceased.
“I urge the state government to immediately provide appropriate compensation to the families of the deceased and ensure the best medical treatment for the injured. May the departed souls attain eternal peace. I pray that their family members find the strength to bear this loss,” he added.
