For more than five decades, India’s best finish at the Women’s Hockey World Cup had remained frozen in time. The fourth-place finish achieved by the inaugural Indian side in 1974 stood as the benchmark through generations of players, coaches and changing fortunes.
However, Salima Tete-led India’s women’s team have finally ended the wait with a historic campaign. Although they still failed to better or equal the 1974 result, the campaign proved that a new era of Indian women’s hockey is on the horizon.
India finished fifth at the 2026 Women’s Hockey World Cup, their second-best result in the history of the tournament and their best in 52 years. More significantly, they reached that position after playing six matches and losing just once, that too against the now-former defending champions and world No. 1 Netherlands.
There was no semi-final appearance and no medal at the end of the campaign. But the manner of the campaign suggested something potentially more important: India had begun to look comfortable against the world’s best, and the results tell the story — two wins, three draws and one defeat.
From holding Olympic silver medallists China to a draw in the opener to denying England and Australia, before ending the tournament with a 3-1 win over world No. 5 Germany, India consistently stayed in games that might once have slipped away.
A campaign built on resilience
India’s tournament began in Pool D for Phase 1 under the new format, with a 2-2 draw against China, a result that immediately offered encouragement.
China twice went ahead, but India twice found a response. It was an early indication that this was not going to be a team easily shaken by the reputation of its opponents.
The response was even stronger in the next game. India dismantled South Africa 6-1, producing their biggest win of the tournament and spreading the goals across the team. It was the sort of performance that demonstrated India’s attacking potential after the measured opening against China.
Then came England. The goalless draw may not have carried the excitement of a six-goal victory, but it said plenty about India’s changing identity. England piled on the pressure and won 12 penalty corners, yet India refused to concede.
The result took India through to the next stage and kept their maiden World Cup medal hopes alive.
A near-perfect second phase
India, after an undefeated run in the first phase, qualified for Phase 2 in Pool A alongside Netherlands, Australia and China.
India’s first game in the second phase was against Netherlands, who eventually supplied Salima Tete and her team with their only defeat.
The 2022 champions won the game 2-0, but even that scoreline carried a degree of encouragement for India. The Dutch controlled the contest and converted two penalty corners, yet India avoided the kind of collapse that can turn a contest against the world’s best into a rout.
It was the only time India left the field beaten. After that came another test of their defensive resolve against Australia. Again, India did not concede.
The 0-0 draw ended their hopes of reaching the semi-finals as they ended level on points with China and Australia at two points each, but the Kangaroos eventually sneaked ahead into the final four with a better goal difference.
India finally ended their campaign with a 3-1 win over Germany in the fifth-sixth classification match to end their campaign in fifth spot with two wins, three draws and a solitary loss against the eventual runners-up.
The defence became India’s foundation
If there was one feature that defined India’s campaign, it was their ability to stay organised when matches became uncomfortable.
The clean sheet against England was particularly telling, given the sustained pressure and the number of penalty corners India had to defend.
The goalkeeping department also provided security, with Bichu Devi Kharibam making important interventions alongside the experience of Savita Punia.
India’s defensive discipline meant opponents had to work for almost every opening. That represented a significant change from some of India’s earlier World Cup campaigns, where moments of pressure could quickly become periods of sustained damage.
In 2026, India were increasingly capable of absorbing pressure without losing their shape.
The young players delivered when needed
The achievement becomes even more striking when viewed through the composition of the squad.
India had 11 World Cup debutants, meaning a significant part of the team was experiencing the tournament at this level for the first time.
Yet the newcomers did not look overawed. Players such as Ishika, Baljeet Kaur and Sunelita Toppo contributed alongside an experienced core that included Savita, Navneet Kaur, Deepika, Lalremsiami and captain Salima Tete.
That blend gave India something they have often lacked at major tournaments: the ability to combine youthful energy with the composure required when games become tight.
Salima and Navneet provided the spark
At the centre of India’s campaign was captain Salima Tete, whose speed and ability to carry the ball forward gave India an outlet whenever they came under pressure.
Her influence was not restricted to scoring goals. Salima repeatedly helped India move from defence into attack, giving the team a way to turn defensive situations into counter-attacking opportunities.
Then there was Navneet Kaur. The forward finished as India’s leading scorer at the World Cup with four goals, including two in the final match against Germany.
The 3-1 victory over Germany was the perfect way to close the campaign. Germany entered the match ranked fifth in the world. India responded with one of their most convincing performances of the tournament, with Navneet scoring twice and Ishika adding another to secure fifth place. It was not merely a victory. It was a statement about where India now belonged.
The change did not happen overnight
India’s fifth-place World Cup finish was not an isolated burst of form. They won the FIH Nations Cup earlier in the year, beating New Zealand 2-0 in the final. That triumph also earned them promotion back to the Pro League. The confidence from that campaign carried into the World Cup.
The return of Sjoerd Marijne as head coach has been another important part of the transformation. Marijne had previously guided India to their historic fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Olympics before returning to the women’s team in 2025.
His emphasis has been on rebuilding belief and creating a stronger team identity. That was visible throughout the World Cup. India did not always dominate possession or control matches, but they repeatedly showed an ability to remain in contests and find ways to survive difficult passages.
India’s World Cup history puts the finish in perspective
India’s fifth-place finish becomes even more significant when placed alongside their record at previous World Cups.
After finishing fourth in 1974, India were seventh in 1978 and 11th in 1983. They finished 12th in 1998, 11th in 2006, ninth in 2010, eighth in 2018 and ninth in 2022.
They also failed to qualify for five editions, i.e., 1986, 1990, 1994, 2002 and 2014, while missing the 1976 and 1981 tournaments.
For decades, the fourth-place finish from 1974 remained untouched. Now, only one Indian team has ever gone further.
The 2026 side has not matched that inaugural generation yet. But it has come closer than any Indian women’s team in more than half a century.
The bigger story
There is still room for India to improve. The biggest obvious area is scoring. They managed 11 goals across six matches, and their inability to turn more possession and opportunities into goals ultimately cost them a place in the semi-finals.
The draw against Australia was the clearest example. India defended well enough to keep a clean sheet, but could not find the goal that would have taken them into the last four.
So this was not a flawless campaign. But perhaps that is what makes it more encouraging. India did not need a string of unlikely upsets to finish fifth. They simply became extremely difficult to beat.
They drew with China. They beat South Africa. They held England. They lost to the Netherlands. They held Australia. And they finished by beating Germany.
Six games. One defeat. Five goals? No — five different opponents faced at the business end of the tournament, and only one team managed to beat them.
For a side that had spent decades searching for another World Cup breakthrough, India’s 2026 campaign offered something more valuable than a one-off result: evidence that the gap between India and the world’s leading hockey nations may finally be closing.
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