India beat Japan 2-1 to book semi-final berth in FIH Women’s Nations Cup

India secured a place in the semi-finals of the FIH Women’s Nations Cup after defeating Japan 2-1 in Auckland. Captain Salima Tete and Lalremsiami scored for India, who remained unbeaten in Pool A with two wins from two matches

Hyderabad: The Indian women’s hockey team defeated Japan 2-1 in its second Pool A match of the FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup New Zealand 2025-26 on Tuesday at the North Harbour National Hockey Centre in Auckland to secure a spot in the semi-finals, having won both its pool matches so far.

Captain and Player of the Match Salima Tete (33′) and Lalremsiami (49′) scored for India, while Hiramitsu Ai (35′) was the lone goalscorer for Japan. It was a memorable match for midfielder Jyoti, who marked her 100th senior international appearance.

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The first half was closely contested, with both sides creating chances but neither able to break the deadlock before half-time.

The game opened up in the third quarter as India took the lead in the 33rd minute through a well-executed penalty-corner variation. Navneet Kaur’s strike was perfectly deflected to Salima by Nikki Pradhan, and the skipper slotted the ball into the net to put India ahead.

Japan responded two minutes later as Hiramitsu (35′) converted a penalty corner to equalise.

With everything to play for in the final quarter, Lalremsiami scored the winner in the 49th minute. Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam played an incisive pass from the edge of the circle towards the goal and found Lalremsiami, who deflected the ball into the net to help India emerge victorious.

The win took the unbeaten Indians to the top of Pool A with six points from victories over the USA and Japan.

India will next face Uruguay in its final Pool A match on June 18 at 4.15 a.m. IST, while Japan and the USA will battle for the second semi-final spot from Pool A.

All FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup 2025-26 matches will be streamed live on Watch.Hockey free of charge.