India’s women’s hockey team delivered another goal-filled performance at the Asian Games, but this time one player stole the spotlight.

Deepika Sehrawat scored a remarkable nine goals in a single match as India demolished Thailand 20-1 in their Pool B encounter on Wednesday.

The in-form drag-flicker was virtually unstoppable from penalty corners, converting all nine of her attempts to script a record-breaking individual performance. Her goals came in the 2nd, 8th, 9th, 24th, 33rd, 36th, 39th, 51st and 57th minutes.

India’s Goal Rush Begins

Deepika opened the scoring within two minutes before Navneet Kaur doubled India’s advantage in the fourth minute. The goals kept coming thick and fast.

Navneet went on to score four times, while Rutuja Dadaso Pisal completed a hat-trick with goals in the 10th, 11th and 47th minutes. Neha Goyal, Lalremsiami, Sakshi Rana and captain Salima Tete also found the net as India maintained relentless pressure on the Thai defence.

Thailand eventually found a consolation goal through Supansa Samanso, but by then India had built an enormous lead. The final score read 20-1.

Three Wins, 56 Goals

The victory marked India’s third consecutive win in Pool B. India had opened their campaign with a stunning 19-0 victory over Uzbekistan before following it up with a 17-1 win against Indonesia. With the 20-1 demolition of Thailand, India have now scored 56 goals in three matches.

Deepika has been at the heart of that scoring spree. Before the Thailand game, she had already scored 11 goals—eight against Uzbekistan and three against Indonesia. Her nine-goal performance now takes her tally to 20 goals in just three matches.

Japan Next

India will next face hosts Japan on Friday in another Pool B encounter. India currently lead the pool with three wins from three matches, with Japan also in contention near the top of the standings.

The 12-team women's hockey competition will see the top team from each pool advance to the semifinals, making the remaining pool matches crucial.

India enter the next stage of their campaign with high confidence and at the centre of that charge is Deepika Sehrawat, whose extraordinary nine-goal performance has added a spectacular new chapter to India’s Asian Games hockey campaign.