UPDATED ON Aug 1, 2021 12:40 PM IST
Rani Rampal and her team waited with bated breath for several hours after edging past South Africa 4-3 on a hot and humid afternoon for their second win at Tokyo Olympics. The Ireland vs Great Britain contest – the last of Group A – would decide the fate of the Indian women’s hockey team, whether it would continue to stay in the Japanese capital or return home on the next flight home.
Anxiety gave way to elation when defending champions Britain beat Ireland 2-0 later in the evening, paving the way for India to enter the quarter-finals of the Olympics, something that has never happened before.
Though India finished fourth in Moscow 1980 – when women’s hockey was introduced at the Games – the knockout format didn’t exist back then with the top-3 in the league phase winning medals.
They had to wait another 36 years before qualifying for Olympics. But at Rio 2016 they had a dismal outing, finishing last and without a win.
But just like the men’s team regrouped after their 1-7 humiliation at the hands of world No.1 Australia, the women too fought their way back into contention in Tokyo after getting drubbed in their first three games against world champions Netherlands (1-5), Germany (0-2) and holders Britain (1-4).