FIH Pro League | Indian women bring down the Dutch in shootout

Savita's heroics lead India to a stunning 2-1 shootout victory over the Netherlands in FIH Pro League match.

As Pien Dicke lined up for the Netherlands’ final shot on Tuesday, an impromptu chant of ‘Savita, Savita’ started from one end of the Kalinga Stadium, gradually moving through the crowds and getting faster, reaching a crescendo with the Indian goalkeeper, in her 301st international match, denying the Dutchwoman, bringing off her fourth save in the shootout and shutting the doors on the opposition for India’s 2-1 win in its final FIH Pro League match at home, a result as unexpected as deserving.

If anyone had said before the competition began that the Indian women’s hockey team would wrap up its eight-game block with a win against the Netherlands, it would have been considered a fantasy. On Tuesday, the Dutch lost only their third match since the beginning of 2024 — all coming in Pro League — and India won only its third game ever against them. The gap between the two sides, both in terms of rankings and results, was too huge.

On the turf, however, it hardly looked so. Jyoti Singh, the 20-year old making her debut in the tournament, barely flinched at the Dutch attacks. Sunelita Toppo, more than a foot shorter than her counterparts Rosa Fernig and Felice Albers, wove, ducked and dodged her way to the front to cut short their momentum.

Laremsiami and Salima Tete kept running hard and feeding forward and at the back, Vaishnavi Phalke and Udita were kept busy. And then there was Savita Punia. For the first 30 minutes, it looked like the game would not move out of the Indian half. The Netherlands had six penalty corners and same number of shots at goal from open play. and for a long time, there were at least 16 players crowding in the Indian 23-yard area.

It was only a matter of time a goal came and there were two, Pien Sanders perfectly positioned to deflect a PC variation and Fay van der Elst made it 2-0 in the 28th. And then the Indians came out, determined to prove the Dutch weren’t as invincible as they thought. “When the girls started playing two-touch hockey and short passes, it broke their press,” coach Harendra Singh said.

In the 35th minute, Deepika got one of those passes near the dotted line, got in and lifted into the net. Eight minutes later, Sharmila’s controlled pass from the backline was tapped into the narrowest of gaps by Baljeet to draw level.

The last time India played the Dutch in a shootout, it lost 1-3 in 2022. On Tuesday, though, there was no way to get past Savita. Deepika and Mumtaz then converted in the shootouts while only Marijn Veen was successful for the Netherlands. “Winning against the World No. 1, Olympic and World champion is definitely a morale booster but this should be the start of a momentum, it shouldn’t be like you win in India and then go out and don’t. We started on a high, then went low and then finished on a high, this needs to improve. I am happy with our defending in these matches, it is important to show your mental strength,” Harendra cautioned.