New Delhi: Sjoerd Marijne’s tenure as the new chief coach began with a win as the Indian women’s hockey team beat Uruguay 4-0 in their Pool B opener of the FIH World Cup Qualifiers in Hyderabad on Sunday.
The South American team, ranked No.19 in the world, were no match for India as the hosts dominated play at the GMC Balayogi Hockey Ground with Sunelita Toppo (21st minute), Ishika (40th), Lalremsiami (49th) and Rutuja Dadaso Pisal (58th) scoring a goal each.
It was a bright start as India made multiple circle entries, creating several goalscoring chances. In the fourth minute, the home side won the first penalty corner (PC) of the night as Udita found the net after a beautifully orchestrated variation but her shot went a bit high and hence the goal wasn’t given.
Uruguay too had their moments as they banked on counterattacking hockey but India’s resilient backline held their ground.
In the 21st minute, India broke the deadlock through a short corner as Sunelita showed great reflexes to pounce on the rebound and tap the ball into the net to open the scoring.
Five minutes later, India received another penalty corner but this time, Annu’s drag-flick was stopped by the Uruguayan defence.
India held most of the possession in the second quarter. But in the 29th minute Uruguay won their first penalty corner of the night but the opportunity was squandered as India managed to swiftly defend their goal and hold the slim lead.
In the 36th minute, India were through on goal as striker Navneet Kaur found herself unmarked in front of the post but Uruguay goalkeeper Maria Bate stepped out and delivered a decisive save.
In the 40th minute, India launched a quick attack as Sakshi Rana played a brilliant pass into the circle to Ishika who did well to slot the ball into the bottom left corner. Uruguay were awarded a penalty corner as well in the 40th minute but they couldn’t reduce the deficit.
In the 49th minute, Rutuja did well to dribble down the left flank and pass the ball to Lalremsiami in the midfield who carried the ball into the circle and delivered a powerful finish past the goalkeeper to score an incredible field goal for her side.
With just over two minutes left on the clock, Rutuja dribbled down the middle and struck a powerful shot to find the net and seal a big win for India.
This is Marijne’s first assignment as head coach after taking over the team last month. He had famously guided India to an unprecedented fourth place finish at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021. He was approached after his predecessor Harendra Singh resigned in December 2025.
India will next face Scotland on Monday.
In the other Pool B match, Scotand opened their campaign with a 1-0 victory over Wales with Amy Costello (20th) scoring the winning goal.
Earlier in the day, England defeated Italy with a dominant scoreline of 5-2 while South Korea beat Austria 1-0 in a tight contest.
Grace Balsdon (12th, 32nd), Lottie Bingham (15th), Elizabeth Neal (16th) and Anna Toman (27th) scored the goals for England while Ivanna Pessina (19th) and Federica Carta were the goalscorers for Italy.
In the second match, Seona Kim (34th) was the lone goalscorer for South Korea.
