A Moment to Cherish! India defeat Germany 3-1 to finish fifth at FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup 2026, best in 52 years
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "A Moment to Cherish! India defeat Germany 3-1 to finish fifth at FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup 2026, best in 52 years")
India defeat Germany 3-1 to finish fifth at FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup 2026 Photograph: (Hockey India)
India may not have celebrated loudly at the final hooter, but the team can take plenty of positives from its performance as it builds towards the Asian Games.
The Indian women’s hockey team staged a superb second-half comeback to beat Germany 3-1 and finish fifth at the FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup 2026 at the Wagener Stadium on Thursday (Aug 27). The result gave India their best finish in the tournament since they secured fourth place in the inaugural 1974 edition.
India came into the 5th/6th place playoff after losing just one match in the competition, however, Germany controlled much of the first half and put India’s attack under pressure.
Both teams failed to score in the opening two quarters. Germany created more chances and won several penalty corners, but goalkeeper Bichu Devi and India’s defence kept them at bay.
India returned from the break with more attacking intent and completely changed the game in the third quarter.
Ishika Chaudhary opened the scoring in the 43rd minute with an excellent reverse-lift finish after making a strong run into the circle.
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India doubled their lead just a minute later when Navneet Kaur converted their first penalty corner of the match in the 44th minute.
Navneet struck again in the 47th minute, calmly lifting the ball past the German goalkeeper to put India 3-0 ahead.
Germany pulled one goal back through Lynn Krings in the 59th minute after she scored from a rebound. However, India defended well in the closing stages to seal a 3-1 victory.
Savita Punia also made important saves, including a crucial penalty corner stop in the final quarter, to help India secure the win.
The victory marked the end of India’s memorable World Cup campaign, with the team finishing fifth after an impressive showing on the global stage.
With inputs from agencies
