New Delhi, January 19: With a great display of speed, strategy and skill, the Indian women’s Kho Kho team has created history. The Team India has won the final match of the Kho Kho World Cup 2025 played at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Stadium on Sunday night. The Indian women, playing in blue jerseys, dominated Nepal from the start in the title match and won with a one-sided score of 78-40.
The Indian attack got off to a great start in turn 1. In three batches, Nepal women got out to easy touches on 7 occasions, with India scoring 14 points. Captain Priyanka Ingle was in great form for her team and had many touch points to her name as the Indians got off to a great start. This was enough to take the women in blue jersey to 34 points and prevent a single dream run for the Nepal team.
Manmati Dhami dismissed Vaishnavi Pawar, and Samjhana B took out Priyanka Ingle, but Chaithra B took the first batch of Turn 2 for India in a dream run. It didn’t last long though, as Deepa completed an all-out moments later. This brought the team back into the game, but they managed to score only 24 points at the end of Turn 2, leaving them with an 11-point deficit by half time.
Team India once again dominated Turn 3, never allowing Nepal’s defenders to get into their rhythm. Deepa BK was the regular player for Nepal, but it went completely in vain, ensuring that the Indians moved closer to the trophy. Chaithra B was the architect of the dream run for India, taking the score to 78 points in Turn 4. Her batch lasted 5 minutes and 14 seconds, ending the game in India’s favour and declaring them the first champions of the Kho Kho World Cup 2025.
India’s road to glory included impressive wins over South Korea, Iran and Malaysia in the group stages. They followed it up with a win against Bangladesh in the quarter-finals and then a stunning win over South Africa in the semi-finals. This historic feat not only crowns India as the inaugural world champions but also marks a watershed moment for this indigenous sport on the global stage.
Match Awards:Best Attacker of the Match: Anshu Kumari (India)Best Defender of the Match: Manmati Dhani (Nepal)Best Player of the Match: Chaithra B (India)
