Women's Junior Asia Cup: India starts with victory over Uzbekistan by 22-0

The Indian women's junior hockey team has started with a win over Uzbekistan by 22-0 in the league match of the ongoing Women's Junior Asia Hockey Cup at Kakamigahara, Japan on Saturday. The Indian team scored 12 goals in the second half and 10 goals in the first half.

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Meanwhile, 10 teams are participating in the Women's Junior Asia Cup tournament which will run till 11th June. Along with the Indian team, four other teams have got direct entry into the Under-21 hockey tournament on the basis of their world rankings, which include teams from China, Korea, Japan, and Malaysia. While the remaining five teams namely Kazakhstan, Hong Kong, Chinese Taipei, Uzbekistan, and Indonesia have qualified for the tournament through the Women's Junior Cup held in Kazakhstan in October last year.

For India, Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke (2', 55'), Mumtaz Khan (5', 43', 46', 59'), Annu (12', 28', 29', 37', 42', 50'), Sunelita Toppo (16', 16'), Manju Chorsiya (25'), Deepika Soreng (17', 24'), Deepika (31', 43', 45', 56'), and Neelam (46') were on target. The Indian women's hockey team began the contest on the front foot and attacked Uzbekistan with regularity. India took an early lead in the game as Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke converted a penalty corner. Mumtaz Khan doubled the Indian team's lead moments later. Annu added to the team's tally by netting a goal as the opening quarter ended with India leading 3-0. 

The second quarter was no different as India dominated the game and it helped them extend their lead by a big margin. Sunelita Toppo, Manju Chorsiya, Deepika Soreng, and Annu scored as India went into the half-time break with a 10-0 lead. Despite having a healthy lead, the Indian team showed no signs of slowing down in the third quarter. They continued to dominate the proceedings with Deepika netting a goal through a penalty corner. Annu scored two more goals to help India take 13-0 lead. Mumtaz Khan and Deepika scored their second goal of the match. They made it 15-0 by the end of the third quarter. 

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The Indian team scored three quick goals in the fourth quarter through Deepika, Mumtaz Khan, and Neelam to make it 18-0. However, that was not all as Annu scored her sixth goal of the match via a penalty stroke. Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke netted her second goal of the game to make it 20-0 for India. A minute later, Deepika smashed home her shot from a penalty corner, following which Mumtaz Khan wrapped up a 22-0 win in favor of India. India will next play against Malaysia in their second pool game on June 5.

The Indian team has been placed in Pool A along with Malaysia, Chinese Taipei, South Korea, and Uzbekistan. Whereas, Pool B comprises Japan, Kazakhstan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and defending champions China. The leading teams in their respective groups will advance to the semi-finals. While the third and fourth-placed teams will play for the fifth to eighth-ranked classification. The fifth-placed teams in both pools will play each other for the 9th and 10th places.