Chak De: Sjoerd Marijne proud as Indian women start Hockey World Cup campaign in style

Sjoerd Marijne could not hide his pride after the Indian women ended their Hockey World Cup campaign in style, securing the fifth spot with a commanding 3-1 win over Germany at the Wagener Stadium in Amstelveen on Thursday.

The result ensured India’s best World Cup finish since 1974when they finished fourth in the inaugural edition. After a campaign in which India lost just one match, victory over Germany provided a fitting finale. After rewriting history, Marijne had only three words to express his delight: “Chak De India.”

“Of course I’m satisfied, but I’m also a coach who always demands more. But this moment needs to be enjoyed. What the girls achieved, they rewrote history,” Marijne said after the breakthrough campaign in India.

However, the Dutch coach was quick to point out that there is still plenty of room for improvement. He praised India’s performances against China and England, but admitted that consistency will be key going forward.

“You can’t always judge your best performance based on the goals you scored. We played really well against China and England. The only game we didn’t play well was against Australia and we know that. We have to work on consistency,” he said.

Marijne also turned his attention to the Asian Games, insisting that the young Indian side must recover quickly and carry the confidence gained from the World Cup campaign into the next big challenge.

“It is a young team and they are amazing, but the next thing is waiting. We have to recover now and take this new good experience to the next tournament, the Asian Games,” he added.

INDIA PRODUCES STUNNING DISPLAY AGAINST GERMANY

Germany had the better of the opening exchanges and forced India to defend for long. The teams went into half-time tied at 0-0, with India struggling to build sustained pressure in the final third.

However, the game changed dramatically after the break. Ishika Chaudhary broke the deadlock in the 43rd minute with a superb reverse lift before Navneet Kaur doubled India’s advantage a minute later from her first penalty corner.

Navneet struck again early in the fourth quarter, calmly rounding the keeper before slotting the ball into the net to make it 3-0. Germany pulled one back through Lynn Krings in the 59th minute but India held firm to complete a memorable victory.

The result was a fitting reward for a young Indian side that has shown resilience throughout the tournament. After rewriting their World Cup record fifth place, India will now look to build on that momentum as they turn their attention to the Asian Games.

– The end

Issued by:

sabyasachi chowdhury

Published on:

27 Aug 2026 23:02 IST