Indian women lose tour opener

For India, Preeti Dubey (33rd minute) and Deepika (38th) scored a couple of goals in the third quarter, while Kathleen Sharkey (6th), Katie Bam (31st) and Kelsey Kolojejchick (48th) sounded the board for US.

Both the teams tried to play cautious hockey. The game’s tone was set, with both looking to hold fort and react through counter attacks. 

In the 6th minute of the match, US took the lead via Kathleen Sharkey. In an otherwise timid first half, India’s Vandana Katariya’s attempt at goal was unsuccessful as the ball hit the post.

India came back tougher in the second quarter and started making inroads into the US defence. They soon started playing strategically compact hockey, denying US the ball in scoring areas. The two teams went into the half time break with US leading 1-0. 

The third quarter was a hard fought battle as India looking to get back into the game started pushing forward in numbers. US, defending deep and working on the counter, were lucky when Katie Bam scored a second in the 31st minute via a pelanty corner. 

India countered quickly and capitalised on their advantage as Preeti Dubey scored the for India in the 33rd minute. 

Immediately, in the 38th minute Deepika scored the equaliser with both teams entering the final quarter as 2-2.