Savita Punia Creates History, Becomes India’s Most Capped Female Hockey Player

The great goalkeeper broke a record that was previously held by Vandana Katariya.

Punia played for the national team for the 321st time during their second game in the 2026 Asian Games against Indonesia at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium in Kakamigahara. India won the match by a 17-1 margin as they continued their incredible start to the competition after a 19-0 win over Uzbekistan in the tournament opener on Sunday (September 20).

Most Capped Indian Women’s Hockey Player

Hockey India Announces Cash Prize

After the match ended and Savita’s record was confirmed, Hockey India (HI) announced a cash prize of ₹10 lakh for Savita for securing the record. Interestingly, Mandpreet Singh had set the record for the being most capped male player in Indian hockey history earlier this year and was awarded the same amount by the governing body of the sport in the country.

Savita’s Incredible Career For India

Savita made her debut for India in 2011 and has since become a regular in the team and has been nicknamed as the ‘Wall of India.’ The goalkeeper was part of the team that won the silver medal in the 2014 Asian Games and the bronze in 2018 and 2022. She stood in goal during the team’s bronze medal victory in the 2022 edition of the Commonwealth Games.

Moreover, she was the star of India’s inspirational run in the Tokyo Olympics, where the team finished fourth and registered their best performance since 1980. In fact, she played a key role in the team qualifying for the Olympics after 36 years in 2016.

Earlier this year, she was awarded the Padma Shri award (India’s fourth-highest civilian award). Moreover, she has won the FIH goalkeeper of the year award thrice (2021, 2022, 2023). She was awarded HI’s player of the year twice (2022, 2024)