FIH Women’s Olympic Qualifiers: India hopes to confirm Paris ticket with win against high-flying Germany

India and Germany played thrice in 2023 with Germany winning them all, besides the practice game before the start of the Qualifiers.

While the numbers favour Germany, India will have the crowd in its corner.  | Photo Credit: Hockey India

Back in the race after a disappointing start, the Indian women’s hockey team will be hoping to keep the winning momentum when it takes on Germany in the semifinal of the Olympic Qualifiers here on Thursday in its toughest game of the competition.

It isn’t often that India starts the underdog in a match at home, but with favourites Germany, the host would have to be at its best to find a way through to the final and a confirmed Olympic ticket. A loss won’t be the end of the road, with a second chance in the third-place play-off, but Savita and Co. will want to avoid getting into another must-win situation. Germany, on the other hand, will be keen to reiterate its superiority and prove its own draw against Japan with numerous missed chances was a rare off day on the field.

While the numbers favour Germany, India will have the crowd in its corner. The teams played thrice in 2023 with Germany winning them all, besides the practice game before the start of the Qualifiers. The last time India won was on shootouts during the Pro-League in 2022. A regulation win was last achieved in a test match in 2015.

“We were prepared for this scenario. We knew right from the start that anything could happen – we could top the pool and play Japan or Chile or finish second and play Germany in the semifinals, there were no doubts or assumptions, and we prepared for every opponent. So we are not really worried,” Savita said on the eve of the match.

“Everyone knows what they are but we know we have to play attacking hockey, which is our strength. Germany is a very fit team, it has a lot of skilled individual players, and they can attack fast. Defence will be very important, and it will be our main focus, we need to play together and attack and defend as a team. We need to be good in counter control, but we will also play our natural aggressive game,” she added.

After the disappointing 1-1 draw against Japan, Germany bounced back with a massive 10-0 win against the Czech Republic to finish on top of Pool A and coach Valentin Altenburg, who had said his team needed to work out ways to open up defences, will be hoping to build on the victory. Having narrowly missed direct qualification with a bronze at the European Championships, the Germans, with a mix of youth and experience, will be keen to prove their pedigree.

“Pressure is always there. The New Zealand game was high-pressure because we had to win it to stay in the competition. The Italy game was also high-pressure because they also had a chance to get three points and a shot at the semifinals. The Germany match will be a different type of pressure because they are ranked higher, but there will be pressure on them also,” Savita explained, adding that the team’s target was to stay in the present and give their 200 per cent on the field. “That’s all we can control, not the result. So that’s what we will focus on,” she said.

The other semifinal will see the USA take on Japan in a clash of styles, the Americans more physical and defensive against the well-rounded Japanese with an airtight defence and equally quick on the counters with an ability to open up the field and find gaps along the ground without resorting to too many high balls.

Japan has been the most impressive Asian side in recent months and its recent outing during the ACT showed what it was capable of. A win will take Jude Menezes’ side to its sixth straight Olympics since making its debut in 2004. A loss will set it up for another must-win game against India or Germany, something it would be hoping to avoid.

Also on Thursday, New Zealand will take on the Czech Republic to salvage pride in the classification games while Italy will face Chile seeking its first win in the tournament.

Thursday’s games:

Chile vs Italy (10.30 am), New Zealand vs Czech Republic (13.30 pm); Semifinals: USA vs Japan (4.30 pm), India vs Germany (7.30 pm).