Vandana Kataria Becomes the First Indian Player to Play 300th international Match | 01 Nov 2023

Why In News?

According to the information received from the media on October 31, 2023, Indian women's hockey team's forward player Vandana Kataria, resident of Roshnabad, Uttarakhand, won the 300th Jharkhand Women's Asian Champions Trophy-2023 at the Jaipal Singh Munda Astroturf Hockey Stadium in Marang Gomke, Ranchi, Jharkhand. Becomes the first player to earn an international cap.

Key Points:

• Vandana Kataria achieved the feat during India's match against Japan in the ongoing Women's Asian Champions Trophy 2023. With this, Vandana became the first Indian female player to play 300 international matches.
• India remains unbeaten so far in the ongoing Women's Asian Champions Trophy 2023. They won their first game against Thailand 7–1, won the second match against Malaysia 5–0 and then defeated China 2–1 in a thrilling encounter.
• It is known that Vandana Kataria came into limelight when she was the top scorer for the Indian team in the Junior Women's World Cup in Mönchengladbach, Germany and played an important role in helping the team win the bronze medal.
• Vandana also played an important role in India's fourth-place finish at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. She is also the first Indian female hockey player to score a hat-trick in the Olympic Games.
• Vandana has also been honored with the prestigious Padmashree award in 2022. Vandana, an experienced forward, was a member of the Indian team that won the Asian Champions Trophy in 2016 and the Women's Asia Cup in 2017.