India’s performance in Rugby Sevens at Asian Games 2023

The Indian women’s team took part in the Rugby Sevens event in the Asian Games 2023 that took place in Hangzhou and failed to make much of an impact.

Sheetal Sharma was the skipper of the team. It also had Priya Bansal, Tarulata Naik, Shikha Yadav, Hupi Majhi, Dumuni Marndi, Lachmi Oraon, Vaishnavi Patil, Kalyan Patil, Mama Naik, Sweta Shahi and vice-captain Sandhya Rai.

India failed to garner even a single victory. They began their campaign after losing 0-38 to Hong Kong at the Hangzhou Normal University Cangqian Athletics Field. India’s campaign went from bad to worse after Japan beat them 45-0.

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India go down tamely in Rugby Sevens in the Asian Games 2023

India did not have luck going in their favour against Singapore after losing 0-15 and yet again failing to score. In the 5-7th classification, India lost 7-24 to Kazakhstan to end what was a horrendous journey for them in the Asian Games 2023.

In Group F, India finished at the bottom of the table after they conceded 98 points and failed to score a single point against Japan, Hong Kong, and Singapore. Japan topped the group with three wins and a points difference of +119. Hong Kong finished second with two wins and a points difference of +50.

Singapore, on the other hand, finished third with one win and a points difference of -71. Kazakhstan won the gold medal in Rugby Sevens after beating hosts China in the final.

2023 marked the second time when the Indian women’s rugby team participated in the Asian Games. Back in 2010, they made their debut when the Asian Games were staged in Guangzhou, China. Back then, the women’s Rugby Sevens team had finished seventh.

The Indian team, ranked seventh in Asia, plies its trade under Ludwiche Van Deventer, who is a former South African player.