Bichu Devi Kharibam had already done it once in Hyderabad. Back in March, with India’s World Cup place on the line against Italy, the goalkeeper produced a crucial save in the 59th minute. Five months later, she did it again — this time with India’s World Cup progression hopes on the line.
With just 41 seconds left, England couldn’t have asked for a better player to be on the ball inside India’s ‘D’. Tessa Howard, the striker who has scored nearly 50 goals combined for England and Britain, got the ball on the reverse and unleashed a tomahawk. It was headed towards the bottom corner – until a diving Bichu pushed the ball away with her outstretched left hand.
On the touchline, Sjoerd Marijne punched the air. And seconds later, the final whistle blew. No goal. No defeat. India were through.
A 0-0 draw is not the kind of result that usually invites grand declarations. There are no celebrations around a winner, no individual hero hogging the headlines, no scoreline that demands to be remembered. But for India, this was perhaps the most significant scoreless draw they have played in a long time.
𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗝𝗢𝗨𝗥𝗡𝗘𝗬 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗡𝗨𝗘𝗦. 🇮🇳🔥
The Indian Women’s Team finish the Pool D stage unbeaten and secure their place in the next round of the FIH Hockey World Cup Belgium & Netherlands 2026. 🏑🏆
With the Semifinal race still alive, the Girls are ready for the… pic.twitter.com/cTm9ersV4O
— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) August 20, 2026
Because three matches into the World Cup, India are still unbeaten. They have drawn with China, hammered South Africa 6-1 and now held England, the side that beat them 2-0 in the World Cup qualifiers final in Hyderabad in March. They finished their pool campaign without a defeat, with a place in the next round secured.
More importantly, India have given themselves something they did not quite have when they arrived in the Netherlands: a World Cup campaign with momentum and meaning.
There were reasons to be cautious before the tournament. This was a team in transition, still trying to establish itself under Marijne. India had to negotiate the qualifiers to get here. Their recent past had been rocky, the rebuilding process incomplete and the World Cup squad a curious blend of experience and youth.
The first match against China, to whom they had lost each of their four meetings before the World Cup, was therefore important. That they left the pitch after a 2-2 draw with mixed feelings, knowing they could have won it, was an immediate measure of the ground this team has covered.
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Then came South Africa, and suddenly there was no ambiguity. India scored six times, with six different scorers, and produced the sort of attacking performance that had been missing too often from this team.
That set up England as the real examination. It was not just about qualification. These two sides have routinely met at World Cups. India knew that England would test whether the encouraging signs of the first two matches were genuine or merely the product of a favourable start.
What this World Cup campaign has begun to offer is something different – a team capable of adjusting to the game in front of it. (Hockey India)
Tough examination
Unlike the South Africa game, India did not have the freedom to sweep forward at will. The goals did not come. Their penalty corners, which had been so productive against South Africa, failed to produce a breakthrough. There were chances, and there were moments when India could have made the game their own.
But there were also moments – quite a few of them – when they had to defend. And defend really deep. That, perhaps, is what makes the draw significant.
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For too long, India’s performances have tended to be judged through a familiar binary: either a promising defeat against a stronger opponent, or a convincing victory against a weaker one. What this World Cup campaign has begun to offer is something different – a team capable of adjusting to the game in front of it. Against China, they fought. Against South Africa, they attacked. Against England, when the game demanded resilience, they survived.
That is the larger significance of Wednesday’s 0-0.
India haven’t won anything yet. They have not suddenly become World Cup contenders because they drew with England. There remain harder tests ahead, and the business end of the World Cup – which begins against the mighty Netherlands on Friday, followed by a crucial game against Australia – will expose every weakness that the group phase may have allowed them to hide.
But this team came into the tournament carrying questions. Could the youngsters handle this stage? Could the attack score enough? Could India compete with the better teams? And, perhaps most importantly, could a side still in the middle of a rebuild find a way to win — or simply avoid losing — when the margins became tight?
These three matches may not have provided all the answers, but there are enough signs of a team on the mend. The midfield held tight, the back line tighter. India had two disallowed goals from penalty corners and in the penalty corner defence, they ensured that none of England’s 11 attempts found the target.
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When Howard, who had already scored twice in this tournament, tried to have a final say in the dying seconds, Bichu denied her with a stupendous save. And for a team that arrived with more questions than expectations, that might be the most important save of all.
PLAYING ON FRIDAY: World Cup second stage: India vs Netherlands (Women’s), 9.30 pm, Live on Star Sports Network and JioHotstar