It was another disappointing result for the Indian women despite their efforts. The Indian women’s hockey team’s hopes of reaching the semi-finals of the FIH Hockey World Cup Belgium & Netherlands 2026 ended on Sunday after a goalless draw against Australia in their final Pool E match at the Wagener Stadium.
India needed a victory to advance but could not find a breakthrough against a resilient Australian side. The result left both teams on two points with an identical goal difference of -2. Australia progressed to the last four on the goals-scored tiebreaker, three goals to India’s two.
FIH Hockey World Cup: What's next for Indian women as semifinal dreams shattered
Hosts and defending champions the Netherlands topped the pool with a perfect record of three wins and nine points while China finished fourth. India will now compete in the fifth-sixth place classification match later this week. The Indian side had earlier lost 0-2 to the Netherlands in the second group stage and carried forward a point from their earlier draw with China.
Despite a determined defensive display against the Hockeyroos, the attack struggled to create clear chances in a must-win encounter. The top two teams from Pool E and Pool F advance to the semi-finals, while the remaining sides contest the ranking matches.
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