India women's hockey team edge past South Korea to lead 2-0 in five-match series

Incheon: The Indian women’s hockey team edged past Korea 3-2 in an absorbing contest to grab a 2-0 lead in the five-match series on Tuesday. The South Koreans came from behind twice in the match but India had the last laugh by keeping their nerve. Goals for India were scored by Poonam Rani (6th minute), skipper Rani Rampal (27th minute) and Gurjit Kaur (32nd minute) while Yurim Lee (10th) and Jungeun Seo (31st) scored for the hosts. [caption id=“attachment_4187831” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of India’s women’s hockey team: Twitter @TheHockeyIndia[/caption] With India’s confidence high after their 1-0 victory in the first match on Monday, they started the first quarter aggressively by making attacking forays inside the opposition’s half. They were rewarded for their efforts when Poonam scored to give her side the lead. South Korea also had chances in the first quarter and were awarded two penalty corners. They made a comeback match by converting the first one through Yurim Lee. The hosts could have taken the lead in the later stages of the first quarter but India defended well to save the second PC as the teams ended the first period locked at a goal apiece. The second quarter saw South Korea start off with back-to-back penalty corners to put India under pressure. However, the visitors stuck to their task as they defended well with young goalkeeper Swati making crucial saves to deny the hosts. With the pressure piling on India, it was a brilliant team-move from the visitors on the counter which saw captain Rani find the back of the net to give her team an important 2-1 lead in the 27th minute. The teams went into half-time with India leading by a single goal, but with South Korea having better chances in the opening half-hour. India did not start the third quarter well as in the 31st minute, Seo scored a field goal to equalise for the second time in the match. However, India’s forwards produced some precise passing to win a penalty corner in the 32nd minute which was well-converted by Gurjit Kaur. South Korea did not throw in the towel, and with almost 25 minutes still to play in the match, they showed fight to unnerve the Indian defence which saw them win a penalty stroke in the 34th minute. But to the hosts’ disappointment, it was saved by Swati. It was an important last quarter in the context of the match as South Korea looked to find the equaliser while the visitors looked to hold on to the lead. The hosts tried to win back possession quickly and played some aggressive hockey in the final quarter but the Indian defence stood tall. In the final few minutes, the hosts played with 11 outfield players, but India’s grit and determination helped them secure a second consecutive victory in the series. India will play their third match of the five-match series against South Korea on 8 March.