FIH Women's Series Finals: As it happened - Poland vs India

India will face Poland at 2:30 p.m. IST in its second Pool A match after beginning its campaign with an impressive 4-1 win over Uruguay on Saturday. Catch the live updates from the match here.

Updated : Jun 16, 2019 16:00 IST

The India women's hockey team during a practice session ahead of the FIH Women's Series finals.
The India women's hockey team during a practice session ahead of the FIH Women's Series finals.
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The India women's hockey team during a practice session ahead of the FIH Women's Series finals.

 

FULL TIME! POLAND 0 - 5 INDIA. Q4 comes to an end and with that, the match. India improved from its 4-1 win against Uruguay and top the table with this win. (Lowly) Fiji awaits the eves in the final Pool game.

58' Less than two minutes left and the Poles are still being forced to play defensive. They are being closed down quickly, being forced into making bad passes or conceding possession. The Indian eves have been fantastic today.

56' FIFTH GOAL! Navneet gets to the end of a long ball, turns her marker and gets her goal with a shot that deflected in via the GK's right leg. A deserved fifth for India.

54' India gets another PC. This time the shot comes off the bar! So so close to the fifth.

52' The only thing more consistent than India's attacking play has been the person who has been on the drums. Non-stop beats since the game began.

50' The PC gets saved and the Poles take back possession.

49' Penalty corner to India. Salima gets fouled as India looks to build an attack. Her shoe comes off in the process. Tactics are discussed while she retrieves her shoe.

47' Gurjit is everywhere! A minute ago, she was back blocking passing lanes for the Poles and now she steals possession near the Polish goal but fails to pick the right pass. India's star for the day.

The final fifteen minutes start. Can Poland pull one back? Will India increase its lead? Or will be see a quarter without goals? We'll know the answer soon.

Q3 comes to an end with chants of ' chak de India ' and the Indian eves walk into a huddle with high-fives all around. Only one goal this quarter. Only.

44' Rinse, repeat. The GK's outstretched right leg makes another save. And the Poles win possession, finally.

43' The Indian eves win a penalty corner. The GK saves a long shot but India wins another PC.

40' As I said that, Lalremsiami gets a shot on target and a timely save by the GK makes sure India doesn't have a fifth.

40' The last five minutes have been quieter than the previous 35. Both teams have exchanged possession but neither side is able to make its way towards the goal.

35' GURJIT SCORES! Her second of the game and she deserves is. Has been a pain for the Poles to defend against.

34' Gurjit can not be caught! She runs down the left, cuts in toward the Polish goal and wins a penalty stroke.

32' The Poles in possession and pass the ball around well. The only problem is, they are well within their half and India is happy to let them have their passing practice there.

Right. We are back for Q3. After the highs of Q2, what's in store for us? We'll find out soon.

Q2 comes to an end and I am going to catch a breather. Three goals in fives minutes has India in command. Will the eves take it easy from here or will they look to increase their goal difference?

28' GOAL AGAIN! Have the floodgates opened?! Gurjit is rewarded for her stellar with a goal.

27' And as I finish typing that, India wins another penalty corner!

26' GOAAAAAAAAAL! VANDANA makes this penalty corner count! She gets to the end of a loose ball after a scramble and shoots it in from close distance. There's no stopping that.

25' India gets a PC and in the scramble, wins another PC.

23' Minutes after the goal, the Indian eves are at it again. Attacking in numbers, cleverly worked passes and more. Well drilled stuff this.

21' GOAL! GOAL! GOAL! INDIA TAKES THE LEAD! Jyoti deflects a shot into the box beyond the GK's reach and the eves celebrate.

20' Another chance wasted but that's good play from India. The goal could be coming, byt he look of things.

19' India on top so far. The Polish GK is forced into another save and India has a corner.

16' India gets Q2 going.

Q1 comes to an end. Poland 0-0 India.

15' A hopeful smash into the circle and India's almost takes the lead! There's a scramble for the ball and the ball bounces of multiple legs but gets saved by the Polish GK's back!

14' Nisha's dribbles her way out of pressure but her defence-splitting pass carried too much power on it. If only!

12' Gurjit Kaur with a good interception around Poland's goal! She steals the ball and tries to dribble her way through but gets crowded out. A speculative shot would've been a better option there, in all honesty. Too many people to weave her way through.

10' Five minutes to the end of the quarter and the pace of the game hasn't changed. Both teams looking to make the early breakthrough but can not find a way through.

6' The Poles are being pushed to attack from the side as India has crowded the midfield here. Defending in numbers.

2' An end-to-end game so far! Stands looks empty but lots of cheering (?!) can be heard for the eves. Chants of 'take the lead' and 'come on India' being the most prominent.

2' India on the defence after that PC. Hold well and win back possession.

1' PC isn't converted but that's good attacking play right away. Making their intentions very clear.

1' India gets a penalty corner right at the start!

- WE HAVE PUSHBACK! India gets the first quarter underway.

- Poland and India are both on 3 points in Pool A, with Poland on top thanks to a better goal diffrence. It defeated Fiji 6-0 in its opening match.

Uruguay and Fiji, by the way, have played each other in their second Pool game, with the South American side winning to sit third in the Pool.

- India defeated Uruguay 4-1 in its opening game. Here's how the match happened and you can read the match report here .

- We do know it's a big day for cricket fans as India is facing archrival Pakistan at the ICC Cricket World Cup in Manchester, UK. Will it rain? Will the weather hold up ? Follow our Live updates here.

We have worked on the mental side to grow as a team, says Marijne

- LINEUPS! Rani (c), Gurjit, Deep Grace, Monika, Nikki, Rajani (GK), Vandana, Navneet, Sushila, Lilima and Nisha.

 

- The Indian women will hope to emulate the men's team which completed a stunning 5-1 win over South Africa to win the Bhubaneswar leg of FIH Series Finals and book its place in the Olympic qualifiers.

- Earlier, to prepare for the tournament, India played two practice matches - against a local club and the Japanese team - and had good training sessions a week prior to the tournament, which has helped it understand the pitch.

In those games, India beat a local club team 4-1 followed by a 2-1 win against Japan which is grouped in Pool B with Chile, Russia and Mexico.

All's going well for the  Indian Eves, so far.

READ | FIH Hockey Series Finals: How India can qualify for the 2020 Olympics

- Pushback is at 2:30 PM IST (6:00 PM local time). The players are warming up.

- India faces Poland at 2:30pm IST in its second Pool A match after beginning its campaign with an impressive 4-1 win over Uruguay on Saturday.

 

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