Hockey India League: Bengal Tigers qualify for Women’ HIL final after prevailing against SG Pipers in tense sudden death

SG Pipers’ Navneet Kaur and Bengal Tigers’ Agustina Gorzelany in action. These two teams will meet again in the final on Jan 10. (Credit: HIL)

The two teams that missed the cut for the final in the inaugural edition of Women’s Hockey India League will now clash for the title in the second season. For the second time in the league phase this year, there was nothing to separate Bengal Tigers and SG Pipers after four quarters of regulation time, and sudden death in the penalty shootout was required to determine who takes the bonus point, where Tigers prevailed 7-6 after 10 attempts for each team. With Tigers securing two points, Ranchi Royals were eliminated from the race for top two while Pipers had already qualified for the final that will be played on Saturday.

The script was a bit different this time around as the first meeting between them ended in a high-scoring 3-3 draw, while the reverse fixture in Ranchi on Tuesday was a tense goalless affair. The Pipers were under defensive pressure for most of the evening but managed to keep the tournament’s leading goalscorer Agustina Gorzelany quiet from Penalty Corners, thanks largely to some excellent first-rushing by Sunelita Toppo and crucial saves by Bansari Solanki. The Tigers outnumbered Pipers 30-10 for circle entries, with the table-toppers largely content to defend their goal and their attackers not finding enough connections going forward, with Navneet Kaur having a rare quiet outing.

The opening quarter of the match witnessed an end-to-end contest as both Pipers and Tigers looked for an early lead. Tigers earned a penalty corner inside the opening three minutes but were unable to make the opportunity count. Pipers then took control of possession, moving the ball swiftly but as the match went on, they started to sit back and absorb the pressure.

Tigers put the Pipers’ defence under pressure throughout the second quarter, managing 14 circle entries compared to their opponents’ one. But Solanki was in fine form, producing multiple brilliant saves to deny the Tigers. Tigers started the third quarter with relentless pressing and soon created a golden opportunity when Vandana Katariya surged into the circle and unleashed a powerful close-range shot, only to be denied by another sharp save by Solanki.

Tigers should have taken the lead early in the fourth quarter when their captain Lalremsiami found herself with only the goalkeeper to beat, but Solanki reacted quickly to take the ball off the striker’s stick. In the closing minutes, the Pipers stepped up their attacking intent but were unable to create a clear-cut opportunity. With just eight seconds remaining, the Tigers earned a late penalty corner and a chance to snatch victory, but they failed to convert.