An hour before pushback, China did India a massive favour by beating England 4-2. India seized the opening in Pool D by hammering South Africa, the lowest-ranked side in the World Cup, 6-1 to move top of the standings on Tuesday.
It was a historic scoreline in Amstelveen at the Wagener Stadion for the women in saffron, who registered their biggest World Cup win, thanks to six different goal-scorers, propelling their goal difference to (+5). Sjoerd Marijne’s side now needs only a draw in the final game against England to ensure progression.
India, however, made a sloppy start, with misplaced passes and mistraps, and was let off by South Africa on the turnovers. Bichu Devi was forced into an early save after Kayla de Waal was found in space inside the circle.
AS IT HAPPENED | India vs South Africa Highlights
On the ball, South Africa had some encouraging signs from Ntsopa Mokoena and Taheera Augousti’s individual abilities, but struggled to find better connections to trouble the Indian defense.
And against the run of play, India opened the scoring, through Sunelita Toppo. The midfielder, who had a shot saved earlier, got lucky when Sakshi Rana’s pass dribbled into the path of Sunelita to poke the ball in.
India’s nerves seemed to settle with that goal as it found better rhythm with its passing and penetration. In the second quarter, as soon as India got its second Penalty Corner, Navneet Kaur, who let Deepika have a crack for the first, signalled that it was her turn. Navneet made it count, taking a touch away from the first rusher, before hammering onto the boards.
India’s nerves seemed to settle with that first goal as it found better rhythm with its passing and penetration.
| Photo Credit:
Hockey India/WORLDSPORTPICS
India’s nerves seemed to settle with that first goal as it found better rhythm with its passing and penetration.
| Photo Credit:
Hockey India/WORLDSPORTPICS
India’s front-foot approach yielded three more short corners in succession from which defender Sushila Chanu got her first goal since 2023 from a rebound. Not known for her goal-scoring, Sushila looked almost embarrassed when her tame effort managed to find a way through.
In the third quarter, the Indian players put on a clinic in finishing with three tomahawk finishes in the space of six minutes. Deepika found the bottom corner after neat build-up on the left side from Baljeet Kaur and Navneet before Lalremsiami, who was conferred an Arjuna Award earlier in the day, slotted in from a tight angle on the right side. Sakshi, the youngest player in the squad at 18, capped off an excellent game by firing into the roof of the net.
The Indian attack, led by Navneet, could have added more, but the South African goalkeepers kept the scoring to just six by pulling off several saves. South Africa finished the game better, managing to get on the scoresheet from a well-worked PC with de Waal deflecting the ball in.
The loss of the clean sheet would not dampen its spirits as India took a big step towards qualification into the second round.
Published on Aug 18, 2026
