Olympic qualifiers | India proves too strong for Italy, confirms advance to semi-finals

India defeated Italy 5-1 in the final Pool B match of the Olympic qualifiers on Tuesday, registering their biggest ever win and clinching second place in their group, qualifying for the semi-finals and keeping their hopes of winning an Olympic ticket alive. Next, they will face Germany for a place in the finals.

After America beat New Zealand 1-0 to take the lead with nine points, India, who only had a draw, started much the same way as against New Zealand, with Salima Tete winning a penalty corner 38 seconds into the game. , Udita scored the goal without making a mistake. However, Italy tightened their defense and pushed forward with their flanks to block any subsequent attacks by India.

The last time the two teams competed for an Olympic ticket was in 2012, also in India, where the hosts defeated Italy 1-0. The last time they met in the 2018 World Cup, India won 3-0.

Despite having nearly equal possession and penetration, the Indians looked more dominant, primarily due to their control of the game inside the two circles, but were unable to convert any chances.

Sangita, Salima, Deepika and Lalremsiami all kept pushing and taking shots but could not break down the defence. Nikki, Udita and Nisha ensured there was no damage to the back end.

The second half was much the same, but in the 41st minute, Lalremsiami hit a solo shot through the middle, Maria Aleman pushed in with a penalty stroke, and Deepika cut the lead to two points.

Seconds after the end of the third quarter, Salima finally scored his own ball, driving it into the net through a narrow gap from the top of the circle. Navneet dribbled past three defenders and scored, Udita added another point, and Italy trailed seconds before time.

Earlier, a volatile New Zealand missed out on an Olympic berth for the first time since 2000 after failing to convert a few chances, including four PCs, against a struggling USA.

The Americans had to wait until the 17th minute before Elizabeth Jaeger spotted a deflection and took the lead, and they held on to the lead until the end.

Pool A went as expected, with Germany defeating the Czech Republic 10-0 in the final league match to take first place in the group, Japan defeating Chile 2-0 to take second place on goal difference, and face the United States in the semi-finals. Decided to clash. .

Result: Pool A: Germany 10 (Sonja Zimmermann 3, Jette Freschutz 2, Charlotte Stapenhorst 2, Paulin Heinz, Nike Lorenz, Selin Orts) bt Czech Republic 0; Japan 2 (Kana Urata, Miyu Hasegawa) bt Chile 0.

Pool B: America 1 (Elizabeth Jaeger) bt New Zealand 0; India 5 (Udita 2, Navneet Kaur, Salima Tete, Deepika), Italy 1 (Camila Machin).