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Harendra Singh's Golden Girls have progressed to the semifinal in style. After a disappointing start against Wales, the team displayed a much-improved outing against Malaysia and then created history by defeating Olympic Champions England. Rani Rampal and her girls then outplayed South Africa in every department to storm into the semi-finals.
India will face a formidable test when they take on Australia in the last four tomorrow.
When asked if India will look to attack Australia or adopt a cautious approach, this is what Indian coach Harendra Singh had to say on the eve of the match. "We do not play defensive hockey. Indian hockey is known and branded as attacking hockey. We will continue the same. That is our strength and matches are always won on the basis of our team strength."
Savita Punia had played a stellar role when India held the mighty Australians to a goalless draw in the Hawke's Bay Cup in 2015 and will look for inspiration from that match.
In an interview with Sportskeeda ahead of the Commonwealth Games, Indian star goalkeeper Savita Punia had stressed that India are not in awe of any team and will go all out for a win.
Gurjit Kaur is getting better with her drag-flicks. One of her flicks hit the crossbar in the match against South Africa but the power was phenomenal.
India looked confident and composed against South Africa. Their passing was more clinical than in any of the previous matches. The 1-0 margin of victory was not indicative of how well Rani Rampal and her team performed.
When coach Harendra Singh was asked about India's chances of reaching the final, his answer was as brief as it was succinct. "One-hundred percent," replied the Dronacharya awardee and all of India will be hoping that his confidence rubs off on the Golden Girls.
Here is all you need to know about the match:
Event: Women's Hockey
Venue: Gold Coast
Date: 12 April 2018
Time: 4:45 pm Indian Standard Time (IST)
Telecast: Sony Six/Sony Ten 2/Sony Ten 3
Live Streaming: Sony Liv
Live Updates: Sportskeeda
