The victory of the Czech team was decided by the opening two goals of Adéla Lehovcová, who won from penalty corners. Anna Kolářová added the third hit. Thanks to the performance of goalkeeper Barbora Čecháková, the home team only managed to reduce the score.
Coach Gareth Grundie’s selection for the match for third place condemned today’s unsuccessful semi-final, in which he lost 0:1 to Austria. Marianne Pultarová’s penalty five minutes before the end decided the Czech defeat after a cautious process.
The equalizer was not brought about by the subsequent advantage or two penalty corners. “When you are whistled for a questionable penalty from my point of view, it is difficult to recover. We were able to create chances until the last minute, but unfortunately it was not our way,” forward Nikol Babická said in a press release.
However, in the match for third place, the Czechs cheered up and won the second medal in the history of the indoor championships. They also won bronze in 2015, when half of the current team was there. The Czechs also played for third place at the first indoor championship in 2003.
| World Indoor Field Hockey Championship in Pretoria: |
|---|
| Men: |
| Finals: |
| Austria – Netherlands 4:4 (2:2), on raids 3:2 |
| for 3rd place: |
| Iran – USA 4:4 (2:2), on raids 3:2 |
| for 9th place: |
| Czech Republic – Kazakhstan 5:2 (3:0) |
| Women: |
| Finals: |
| Netherlands – Austria 7:0 (3:0) |
| for 3rd place: |
| JAR – Czech Republic 1:3 (0:1) |
| semi-finals: |
| Austria – Czech Republic 1:0 (0:0) |
