Auckland [New Zealand], Jan 25 : The Indian Women’s Hockey team completely overpowered the New Zealand Development squad for a 4-1 win here on Saturday.
With this, India made a winning start to their tour of New Zealand.
Rani Rampal scored the opening goal of the match. Sharmila doubled the lead in the third quarter and Rampal consolidated their position by adding another goal to the tally. Namita Toppo scored India’s fourth goal.
Chief Coach Sjoerd Marijne said they played a very controlled game.
“In the beginning, we struggled a bit with the jet lag but after that we played a very controlled game and created a lot of opportunities. The last two quarters New Zealand created a lot of pressure and they pressed hard but we continued to remain positive with our attack,” Hockey India’s official website quoted Marijne as saying.
Marijne said their aim is to improve with every match during the tour.
“Today we played with 16 players just like the Olympic Games and every match we will change the players. Whether they make the squad depends on these matches and how they cope under pressure. We tried a few new things in the match today but we still need improvement and that’s why we are here, to improve our game in every match,” he said.
India will play three matches against the New Zealand women’s team and one with Great Britain during the tour.
India will face New Zealand on January 27.
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