Hockey: Indian women's team in hunt for direct last-8 spot

Amstelveen, July 6

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A lacklustre Indian women’s team needs to tick all the boxes against New Zealand in its final Pool B match to seal a direct quarterfinals place in the FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup here tomorrow.

The Indians, who achieved a historic fourth-place finish at the Olympics last year, drew 1-1 against Tokyo bronze medallists England and China in their first two matches. The Savita Punia-led side is currently placed third in Pool B with two points, below China and leaders New Zealand, who defeated England 3-1 on Tuesday.

According to the format, 16 teams are divided in four pools of four teams each. The pool toppers will directly qualify for the quarterfinals, while the second and third-placed teams will feature in the crossovers. The winner of the crossovers will grab the remaining four quarterfinals spots. India would thus look for an outright win against New Zealand and hope for China to draw or lose against England to top Pool B.