India Grind Out Semi-Final Win, Set Up Asian Games Hockey Final Against China

India’s women’s hockey team had spent the Asian Games turning speed and relentless pressure into a defining strength. Against South Korea on Wednesday, they showed another quality: patience.

India defeated South Korea 2-0 in the semi-final to book a place in the Asian Games final, where they will face defending champions China. The victory also keeps India’s hopes of securing a ticket to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games alive.

Before the tournament, captain Salima Tete had described her teammates as “10 Ferraris on the field”, referring to the team’s speed, fitness and ability to keep pressing. Against South Korea, India once again showed why that description fits.

For the first 30 minutes, however, the goals refused to come.

India dominated possession, repeatedly entered the circle and earned nine penalty corners in the first half. But South Korea’s disciplined defence and goalkeeper kept India at bay. Rather than becoming impatient, India continued to circulate the ball, recycle possession and put pressure on the Korean defence.

The breakthrough finally arrived in the 44th minute. At a penalty corner, Ishika was the injector, but instead of the expected Deepika drag-flick, Deepika received the ball near the top of the circle and immediately returned it to Ishika. The variation caught South Korea off guard, allowing Ishika to get a shot away and finally break the deadlock.

Four minutes later, India doubled their lead.

Salima accelerated into the circle from the baseline and sent the ball across the dangerous area in front of goal. The delivery caused confusion among the Korean defenders before ricocheting off a defender and finding the net.

India continued to press even after taking control of the match. With less than five minutes remaining, Rujuta chased down a misplaced pass to keep possession, underlining the intensity with which the team played throughout the 60 minutes.

India finished the match with 61 per cent possession and 12 penalty corners, compared with South Korea’s three. They also prevented Korea from building sustained attacking pressure.

The result extends India’s impressive campaign in Kakamigahara. Before the semi-final, India had scored 66 goals in five pool matches — the highest tally in the tournament — while conceding only three. Deepika had contributed 21 goals, followed by Navneet Kaur with 10 and Rutuja Pisal with seven.

India’s goals had come from different situations, with 34 scored from field play and 30 from penalty corners. However, the semi-final presented a tougher defensive challenge than the team had faced in the pool stage against Uzbekistan, Indonesia and Thailand.

China, meanwhile, booked their place in the final after edging hosts Japan 4-2 in a shootout following a draw in regulation time. The defending Asian Games champions and Paris 2024 Olympic silver medallists will now face India for the gold medal on Friday.

With the Asian Games title and an Olympic qualification place at stake, India will enter the final knowing that the biggest test of their campaign awaits.