FIH ‘With 11 debutants, a draw against World No. 4 is very good for future’: Sjoerd Marijne

India players (in white) fight for possession with a Chinese opponent (in red) on Sunday. Pic/Hockey India

With 11 players making their Hockey World Cup debut, Indian women team's 2-2 draw against world No. 4 China was a significant result for the future, head coach Sjoerd Marijne said on Sunday. India twice took the lead but had to settle for a point after China - the 2024 Olympics silver medal winners - fought back in the Pool D opening match.

Sjoerd Marijne

Navneet Kaur (8th) and Deepika (25th) scored for India while Zhang Ying (15th) and Ma Ning (39th) were the goal getters for China. "With 11 debutants in the team, a draw against the World No. 4 is very good for the future," Marijne said.

"I am satisfied, but the result could have been different if we had got the PC in the end. I don't want to talk about the referee's decision. That's the way it is and we have to deal with it," he added. India had already exhausted their video referral when they appealed for a penalty corner in the final few minutes.

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