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Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey hailed the women's team for their landmark gold medal win at the ongoing Asian Games, pointing out the improvement in their game over last few months and exceptional performances in both attacking and defensive fronts.
The Indian women's hockey team produced a historic performance on Friday, defeating reigning Asian champions China 1-0 to clinch the gold medal and end a 44-year wait for an Asian Games medal in Aichi-Nagoya. Ranked No. 8 in the world, India stunned World No. 4 China in a fiercely contested final, with Lalremsiami scoring the decisive goal in the 10th minute through a field goal.The triumph marks India's first women's hockey medal at the Asian Games since 1982, when the team last stood on the podium. Speaking to ANI after the win, Tirkey said, "The women have now made history after 44 years. We last won in Delhi back in 1982. As the President of Hockey India, I feel incredibly happy today, seeing the hard work the girls have put in over the last few years finally bearing fruit. You witnessed their magnificent performance during the World Cup. The team stood tall against top-tier opponents, and today, they are Asian champions. The teams performance over the last six or seven months has been truly excellent...We can see a marked improvement in the teams fitness, and they are mentally very strong." "The youngsters are playing their attacking game fearlessly. Players scored great goals, and Savita made brilliant saves. They are playing attacking hockey right up to the final moments, and the defense has been outstanding as well. Today, the team is playing in a style where the forwards also contribute to the defense. This demonstrates that the team is physically very fit. I am personally delighted with the teams performance; it has been excellent. I want to congratulate the entire team," he added. Tirkey also credited the revived Hockey India League (HIL), revived since 2024-25 season, for the improvement and development of women's team game. "Over last past two years, Hockey India League has been revived again and some of the best players have played it. I can see some development in our women's team's game because of it. We managed to keep China silent and did not allow them to score a goal for such a long time. Our defence looked really strong. It is such a matter of pride," he added. This is India's 76th medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games, with 16 golds, 25 silver medals and 35 bronze medals. The gold medal also brings a significant reward for the Indian team, as the victory secures direct qualification for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games. The achievement comes after a difficult Olympic cycle for the Indian women's hockey team, which narrowly missed out on qualification for the Paris 2024 Olympics following its impressive fourth-place finish at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. India's campaign was also highlighted by a prolific goalscoring effort. Deepika Sehrawat finished as the tournament's top goalscorer with 21 goals, followed by teammate Navneet Kaur with 10 goals, while China's Jiaqi Zhong scored nine. After four decades of waiting, Indian women's hockey has once again reached the top of Asia. (ANI)
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