Savita Punia did not have much to do in the early part of the Asian Champions Trophy in Ranchi. It would not be an exaggeration to say she had to work harder in the pre-tournament press conference where she was bombarded with questions than in the first two matches against Thailand and Malaysia. On Sunday, on the night of the final, the Indian captain came up with a massive performance as India defeated Japan to win the ACT title for the first time since 2016.
Sangita Kumari (17′), Neha (46′), Lalremsiami (57′) and Vandana Katariya (60′) were the scorers as India finished their assignment in Ranchi with seven wins in seven matches.
If you are wondering how the plaudits go to a goalkeeper in a match where the scoreline reads 4-0, the final in front of packed stands once again, was closer than that suggests. Savita came up with multiple saves on the night to keep her side in the lead, first in the second quarter when she was sharp from a series of Penalty Corners for Japan. Then came the big moment in the final quarter when Japan won a Penalty Stroke. With sufficient time left in the match, a goal there would have brought Japan in the game. But the Indian captain put out her left foot in time to prevent the ball from going in.
Here are your winners – Team India 🇮🇳#IndiaKaGame #HockeyIndia #JWACT2023 pic.twitter.com/KO06y5ODBJ
— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) November 5, 2023
India then hit Japan on the counter to add gloss to the scoreline with two late goals.
Jude Menezes – the Indian Olympian who has spent a considerable time between the post would say, “Savita kept them in the contest early. A goal then, and it would have been a different game. And with that stroke save too, she absolutely changed the game basically,” Menezes said.
Hard yards
On the first rest day of the tournament, only the Indian goalkeepers trained. But that wasn’t new for Savita. As she had said then, they have always put in the hard yards especially after the arrival of head coach Janneke Schopman. The former Dutch star puts them through the paces every chance she gets, and training for quick reflexes to making back-to-back saves and getting ready to deal with Penalty Strokes is how majority of the session was spent.
A crown for the winning captain of the Jharkhand Women’s Asian Champions Trophy Ranchi 2023.
From one Champion to another the passing of the baton.#HockeyIndia #IndiaKaGame #JWACT2023 pic.twitter.com/pQ5evsHC3F
— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) November 5, 2023
And it is exactly on those fronts that Savita delivered. The 33-year-old doesn’t wear her heart on the sleeve but she put her stick up and punched the air quietly, as she pointed to the dugout. As if to tell her coach that those extra hours paid off on the night that mattered.
“I know she is always ready,” Schopman said after the match. “Today she stepped up when we needed her. It’s good for her, she is a good goalkeeper. Not that I want too many balls on goal, but she stopped all of them and it was good to see.”
India and Japan had met each other twice already in the last month. First, in the bronze medal match at the Asian Games where India bounced back after a heartbreaking defeat in the semifinal against China. Then in the group stage in Ranchi, another close match was edged 2-1 by Japan. And for the most part, it seemed like this was destined to be a close one too.
Neha and Navneet Kaur, who have played so much together in their careers from their days in Haryana, combined to release Sangita Kumari down the right. India’s leading goalscorer in the tournament (6) didn’t make a mistake. The second quarter saw Japan fight back before an even, end-to-end, sometimes scrappy third quarter.
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Then came a dramatic final quarter. India extended their lead early as Deepika found Deep Grace Ekka with a superb back-flick. Deep – the player of the match – got the shot away on goal, Neha got the final touch. After Savita’s save of the stroke, it was Lalremsiami who scored from another PC rebound. After struggling most of the tournament with the short corners, India picked the right night to step things up a notch.
“Sometimes the girls just need a little bit of a wake-up call. I didn’t even show them the PCs from the semifinal, I just told them it wasn’t just good enough. We were all making mistakes. I said to them, ‘don’t have to score all the time, but execute’. Today one of the players decided themselves on a variation. That’s where growth is in the tournament,” Schopman added.
In the end, after back-to-back tournaments in the space of a month, India would have perhaps liked to win the title more in Hangzhou (with Olympic qualification on the line) given the option to pick one. But Schopman has been saying all week, “I know we are a good team,” and Savita Punia’s side showed just that.
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