India skipper Salima Tete feels that many youngsters making senior debuts in the FIH Pro League 2022 will benefit the team when they compete in the upcoming Junior Women’s World Cup.
Youngsters including Akshata Abso Dhakale, Deepika, Sangeeta Kumari and Bichu Devi Kharibam made their senior team debuts in the FIH Hockey Pro League.
Salima spoke about how this experience has helped the team ahead of the big tournament in the age group.
“We did practice matches with the senior team, which really helped us a lot. Several players from our team also got a chance to debut in the FIH Hockey Pro League 2021/22.
“We have taken full advantage of these opportunities to motivate ourselves and be tournament ready. We’ve also had some really good training sessions and everyone has been really helpful in building this team up,” Salima said.
The 20-man Indian team is gearing up for the tournament, which was postponed for this year due to Omicron’s threat in South Africa.
The event is scheduled to begin in Potchefstroom, South Africa from April 1, with India taking on Wales in their first game of the season on April 2.
Speaking at a virtual press conference, Salima spoke about her role as captain and how the team is preparing for the tournament.
Salima said, “As a captain, I will try to help my teammates any time they need me. I will also make good combinations with the players.”
“We have some experienced players in our team including Lalremsiami, Sharmila and Ishika Choudhary. We will all discuss together how we can take the team forward and improve our gameplay together. My role will be to take the team with me.”
The Indian team has been placed in Pool D along with Germany, Malaysia and Wales. After the Welsh challenge, India will play Germany on 3 April, followed by their last group-stage match against Malaysia on 5 April.
The team’s vice-captain Ishika Choudhary said she is feeling confident to join the leadership group.
“I am confident of being named as the vice-captain of the team. We are getting full support from every corner. We have been playing together for some time. We have a good understanding as a team.
“We are young too, so we are very excited and full of energy. So, I know I have the support system that I need to help me with the responsibility and I can’t wait for the tournament to start,” Ishika said.
Lalremsiami, who has been an integral part of India’s senior women’s team for the past few years, also spoke about her experience of playing at the senior level, which can help her and the team in the prestigious event.
He said, ‘There are some players in our team who do not have that much experience in the game. My biggest role will be guiding these players and helping them adapt to pressure.
“I will look to help the team identify when we need to attack, and when we need to defend, and will take every responsibility that comes my way,” said the 20-year-old.
The tournament was originally scheduled to take place in December 2021.
Sharmila Devi spoke on the four-month break and said the delay helped the team as they got time to work on areas where they needed to improve.
“The four-month break has been like an advantage as it gives us more time to practice and prepare ourselves for the World Cup. We have worked a lot on our penalty corners, defense at this point of time, which was one area we needed to improve on.”
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