Page 13 - Indian Hockey Team

Hardik wins HI Men's Player of the year, Salima wins it in women's category

Star Indian midfielders Hardik Singh and Salima Tete were on Sunday conferred with the Player of the Year awards in men and women categories respectively during the sixth Hockey India Annual Awards here. Both the awards, in the name of legendary Balbir Singh Sr, carries a cash prize of Rs 25 lakh each. India vice-captain Hardik also bagged Ajit Pal Singh Award for Midfielder of the Year, which carries a prize purse of Rs 5 lakh. India captain Harmanpreet Singh won the Pargat Singh Award for Defender of the Year and took home Rs 5 lakh, while veteran custodian PR Sreejesh was honoured with the Baljit Singh Award for Goalkeeper of the Year. Dhanraj Pillay Award for Forward of the Year went to young striker Abhishek. Asunta Lakra Award for Upcoming Player of the Year (Women, Under-21) was bagged by Deepika Soreng, while the recognition in the men's division, which is in the name of former India drag-flicker Jugraj Singh, went to Araijeet Singh Hundal. Both the awards carry a prize mo

Fulton opts to go with full list of probables for crucial Australia tour

Drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh will lead a 27-member strong Indian team in a five-match away hockey Test series against Australia, with chief coach Craig Fulton opting to go with almost the entire core group of probables undergoing training in Bhubaneswar. India will leave for Australia on April 1 and play their opening game on April 6, followed by matches on April 7, 10, 12 and 13. All the games will be played in Perth. The tour against one of the best hockey-playing nations is significant and the Indian team will aim to fine-tune its preparations ahead of this year's Paris Olympics. The tour will give Fulton the opportunity to have a look at his probable 16-member squad for the quadrennial showpiece event. But having said that, ahead of Paris Olympics the Indians will have another important assignment in the Belgium leg of the Pro League in May, which will give Fulton more options. "This will be a very important tour for us as it will not only ascertain the level we are at and t

Paris 2024: India rope in Dutch goalkeeping coach Dennis van de Pol

India have roped in Dutch goalkeeping expert Dennis van de Pol to aid the men's hockey team's preparations for the Paris Olympics. A well-known hockey goalkeeping coach, Van de Pol has been working with the Indian goalies for nearly four years now, with his first stint in 2019. He will join the ongoing national coaching camp at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar, where he will work closely with PR Sreejesh, Krishan Pathak and Suraj Karkera. The 10-day special goalkeeping camp, overseen by chief coach Craig Fulton, will end on March 26, a week before the team leaves for the Australia tour. "This is a very important phase for the Indian men's team. In their quest for another podium finish at the Olympics, Hockey India is ensuring the team is provided with all the necessary support they need to fulfil this dream," Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey was quoted as saying in a media release. "We have re-emphasised the importance of these specialised coaching camps in goalkeeping and dr

PR Sreejesh aspires to be Indian hockey team's chief coach by 2036

Indian men's hockey team goalkeeper PR Sreejesh doesn't want to predict his future at the moment and will take a call on his retirement after the Paris Olympics but the veteran custodian aspires to be chief coach of the national side by 2036. Sreejesh, who will be featuring in his fourth Olympics this year, refused to believe that the upcoming edition in Paris could be his last outing in the sporting extravaganza. He remains optimistic but said once he calls it quits, he definitely wants to give back to the game in one or the other way. "For me, this Olympics is really important because at this age it is really hard for me to talk about next four year cycle. From the last Olympics, I was only taking one year at a time. The rest decision comes after the Olympics," Sreejesh told PTI in an interview. "I don't think so (it will be his last Olympics) because when you are 36 and doing a beep test of 20.8 , I think it's quite good. "(But) after my career I will take a break for sure. I w

Paddy Upton to strengthen Indian men's hockey team for Paris Olympics

It's mind over matter for Hockey India as the sports body hired renowned South African mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton to assist the men's national team in the Paris Olympics. Upton, who played a role in India winning the 2011 Cricket World Cup, will be a part of the support staff of the country's men's hockey team in Paris. He was also there when the team won gold medals at the recent Asian Champions Trophy and Asian Games. Indian men's hockey team chief coach Craig Fulton confirmed to PTI that Upton will be with his wards at the Olympics. "We have Paddy Upton, he will be with us in Australia (for Test series). We will be using him wisely. For sure he will be there for Olympics with us," Fulton said when asked about the mental conditioning coach's services. Fulton, who is also a South African, believes that world ranked fourth India are still to reach their peak and there are plenty of bases to cover in the coming months. "We are not complete yet but, in 4-5 months from the

FIH Hockey Rankings: Indian men slip to 4th, women's team ranked 9th

India on Tuesday slipped a spot to the fourth position in the latest FIH men's world rankings with Germany taking the third place following their impressive run at the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers. India (2761) had directly qualified for the Paris Olympics through an Asian Games gold last year and didn't need to play in the recently-concluded Olympic Qualifiers. Germany (2786), on the other hand, went unbeaten at the Olympic Qualifiers in Oman and followed that up with two wins and two draws against Argentina and a young Belgian side during the Santiago del Estero mini tournament in the FIH Pro League to surpass India. Netherlands (3060) continue to sit at the top of the rankings, coming away from the India leg of the FIH Pro League, relatively unscathed, with two draws against India and a loss to Australia accounting for their only dropped points in 8 matches. Belgium (2848) continue to hold on to the second place in the rankings after a strong showing at the Olympic Qualifiers i

Defending Asian champions Trophy crucial to becoming best: Hardik Singh

Indian men's hockey team vice-captain Hardik Singh feels that the Asian Champions Trophy triumph last year was the perfect impetus for his side to achieve greater heights and defending the title will be an important step in becoming the best in the world. Since emerging victorious in the Asian Champions Trophy last year, the Indian hockey team went on to win the Asian Games and directly qualify for the Paris Olympics while also putting up a good show in the home leg of the FIH Pro League. The next edition of the men's Asian Champions Trophy will take place in Hulunbuir City, China from September 8 to 17. "Coming back from behind to win the tournament was a special feeling, and looking back, I feel the team used that game as a springboard to reach greater heights," Hardik was quoted as saying in a Hockey India release. "There is no doubt that we are looking forward to playing in the Men's Asian Champions Trophy 2024 and defending our title," the midfielder added. "We aim to be the

Turmoil in hockey: HI head Tirkey, secretary Bhola Nath Singh deny rift

Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey and secretary general Bhola Nath Singh on Wednesday denied outgoing CEO Elena Norman's assertion of a rift between them, asserting that they are "united" and working in the best interest of the sport. Norman resigned on Tuesday and in an interview to PTI she alleged that there was factionalism in the body. The 49-year-old Australian suggested that Tirkey and Singh were at loggerheads and also complained of a difficult work environment. In a joint statement, Tirkey and Singh rejected Norman's claims. "Recently there have been statements by outgoing officials published in the media, claiming that there are divisions within the organisation. This is not correct. We remain united in working together, and as always in the best interest of the sport," the two said. "Hockey India is an autonomous and professional body dedicated to the development of Indian hockey. Our primary objective as an organisation has been and continues to remain the welfare and

It was becoming suffocating: Hockey India CEO Elena Norman on resignation

Outgoing Hockey India CEO Elena Norman on Tuesday said the work environment in HI was "suffocating" and she had no choice but to call it quits. After holding the position for 13 years, Norman resigned and even though HI did not reveal the specific reasons for her decision in its official statement, the Australian spoke out on what pushed her to exit. "Absolutely, it was getting tough to deliver in the fight between two factions. The environment was becoming suffocating," Norman told PTI in an interview. "There are two factions in Hockey India. There is (President) Dilip Tirkey and I and there is (Secretary) Bholanath Singh, (Executive Director) Cdr. R K Srivastava and (Treasurer) Sekar J Manoharan," she said. "There are guys who want power and then there is (HI President) Dilip (Tirkey) who is a nice guy, only after betterment of Indian hockey," the 49-year-old explained. What aggravated the entire situation was the non-payment of her remuneration for three months. "There were so

FIH Pro League: India end home leg on winning note, beat Ireland 4-0

The Indian men's hockey team blanked lower-ranked Ireland 4-0 to end their home leg of the FIH Pro League campaign on a winning note here on Sunday. Nilakanta Sharma (14th minute), Akashdeep Singh (15th), Gurjant Singh (38th) and Jugraj Singh (60th) were the goal scorers. Nilakanta and Jugraj got their goals from penalty corners while Akashdeep and Gurjant struck through field efforts. India dominated the match and led 2-0 half time. The Indian team is currently placed at the third spot with 15 points from eight matches, with five wins (three outright and two shootout) and three losses (one outright and two shootout). The Netherlands and Australia are above India with 26 and 20 points respectively. The Harmanpreet Singh-led side will continue their FIH Pro League campaign in the European leg in May-June.

Janneke Schopman resigns as chief coach of Indian women's hockey team

Indian women's hockey team chief coach Janneke Schopman resigned on Friday, days after creating a furore by claiming that she was not valued and respected enough by the national federation. The Dutch coach had taken over the reins of the women's team in 2021 from Sjoerd Marine, who had led the side to a historic fourth position at the Tokyo Olympics. Schopman's contract was to end in August this year after the Paris Olympics but following her recent critical comments, it was expected that she won't continue. Hockey India (HI) informed that the 46-year-old coach tendered her resignation to Hockey India President Dilip Tirkey after the conclusion of team's outing in the home leg of the FIH Hockey Pro League in Odisha. "At the back of the disappointment at the recent Olympic Qualifiers, her resignation has paved the way for Hockey India to look for a suitable Chief Coach for the Women's Hockey Team who could prepare the Indian Team for the next Women's World Cup in 2026 and Los Angele

FIH Men's Pro League: India draw 1-1, lose 2-4 to Netherlands in shootout

India lost 2-4 against the Netherlands in shootout after their return leg FIH Pro League match ended in a 1-1 draw here on Wednesday. In their first leg match in Bhubaneswar, India had defeated the Netherlands 4-2 in shootout after a 2-2 stalemate in regulation time. World no.1 Netherlands broke the deadlock through Floris Middendorp (4th minute) before vice-captain Hardik Singh (38th) equalised for India, who are ranked fourth. In the shootout, Araijeet Singh Hundal and Lalit Kumar Upadhyay scored for India, while Sukhjeet Singh and Shamsher Singh missed from the one-on-one situation. The win gave Netherlands two points, while India pocketed one point. India applied early pressure on the Dutch with some threatening circle penetrations but failed to yield any positive results. The Netherlands, in turn, took the lead from their first circle entry in the fourth minute through Middendorp, who scored his first international career goal. Middendorp scored from a rebound after India .

FIH Pro League: India look to continue recent domination over Netherlands

The Indian men's hockey team would look to continue its recent domination over the Netherlands with an outright win when the two sides meet in the return leg match of the FIH Pro League here on Wednesday. India have had a good run in the Pro League so far with the team led by drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh winning two out of their five games in regulation time. India's resilience saw them defeat the Dutch and Spain in shootouts, earning valuable bonus points. Their solitary defeat came at the hands of Australia but that too from a winning position. India are currently placed fourth in the Pro League standings with 10 points from five matches. The Netherlands are leading the chart with 18 points from nine games ahead of Argentina (13 points from 8 matches) and Australia (12 points from 4 games). But having said that the Indians, ranked third in the world, have had to face a tough time in their last two matches against world No.12 Ireland and world No.8 Spain. India were made to t

Indian men's hockey team beats Spain via penalty shootout in FIH Pro League

Experienced goalkeeper PR Sreejesh produced the decisive save as the Indian men's hockey team beat Spain via penalty shootout in an FIH Pro League match here on Monday. The two teams were locked 2-2 in the regulation time. Jarmanpreet Singh (1st minute) and Abhishek (35th) sounded the board for India while Jose Basterra (3rd) and Borja Lacalle (15th) got the goals for Spain in the normal time. The penalty shootout too turned out to be a thrilling contest as the two teams were locked 7-7 before Lalit Kumar Upadhyay put India ahead. Indian custodian Sreejesh then produced a decisive save, denying Spain captain Marc Miralles, to earn the win for the hosts. India will next face the Netherlands on Wednesday.

Pro League matches vital for Paris 2024 preparations: India coach Fulton

Indian men's hockey team chief coach Craig Fulton on Sunday said the ongoing FIH Pro League matches are vital to his team's preparation for the Paris Olympics scheduled for July-August. The Indians have so far played four matches in the Pro League out, winning three and losing one against the mighty Australia. "It (Pro League) gives us 18 games that you are looking in the build up to Paris. So it is important. Whether some teams are putting their strongest teams or not is out of our control," Fulton said during a virtual press conference. "Everything we are looking forward to is to have more perspective about our game, develop our game with the squad we have. "We know we can compete in all the games, in different phases we have to different things and do them better. So the Pro League is really important for now because this is the only competition we have". India captain Harmanpreet Singh too agreed with his coach. "These are the major matches we are getting before the Olympics

Indian women's hockey team stun better placed Australia 1-0 in Pro League

Forward Vandana Katariya scored from a penalty corner to help the Indian women's hockey team stun world number 3 Australia 1-0 in the FIH Pro League here on Saturday. Katariya scored in the 34th minute as world number nine India registered their second win of the tournament and also avenged last week's 0-3 loss to Australia in Bhubaneswar. India found themselves under pressure early in the first quarter as Australia was awarded a penalty corner in the third minute. However, the Indian captain and goalkeeper Savita Punia did well to keep the ball out. A few minutes later Jane Claxton took a shot at goal but it went on to hit the goalpost. The first quarter was plenty of action but ended without any goals being scored. The second quarter started with India being awarded a penalty corner early on but it wasn't converted. The Aussies won their second penalty corner in the 20th minute but failed to convert it. Both the teams made plenty of circle entries but the first-half ended ...

FIH Pro League: Indian women's hockey team looks to end home leg on a high

Bruised and battered, the Indian women's hockey team will look to end the campaign at home on a high note when it takes on Australia and the USA in the Pro League here over the weekend. Having failed to qualify for the Paris Olympics, the Savita Punia-led team's performance has gone from bad to worse against the top sides in the ongoing FIH Pro League, losing five of their six matches. After suffering a 1-2 defeat in their first match against China, India went on to lose 1-3 to the Netherlands and 0-3 to Australia before beating the United States 3-1 in their final match of the Bhubaneswar leg. In their first match of the Rourkela leg, India took the lead early but China came back strongly to win the game 2-1. India then went on to lose 0-1 to the Netherlands. Although they produced a much-improved defensive show against Netherlands in the previous game, they lacked sharpness and innovative moves upfront and their penalty corner conversion rate remains abysmal. "We lost the last .

FIH Pro League 2023-24, IND vs AUS: Fighting India lose 4-6 to Australia

Skipper Harmanpreet Singh's brace went in vain as the Indian men's hockey team conceded three goals in the final quarter to lose 4-6 to Australia in a FIH Pro League match here on Thursday. It was Australia who started and finished the match in style with the Indians dominating in the middle period. Harmanpreet (12th, 20th minutes) converted two penalty corners, while Sukhjeet Singh (18th) and Mandeep Singh (29th) were the other goal getters for India. Blake Govers struck twice for Australia in the second minute besides Aran Zalewski (40th), Lahlan Sharp (52nd), Jacon Anderson (55th) and Jack Welch (58th). The Kookaburras took India for a surprise at the start of the match with Govers handing the visitors a 2-0 lead in the second minute. He first scored from Australia's first penalty corner past India custodian Krishan Bahadur Pathak and then doubled his side's lead with an unstoppable shot past the goalkeeper. It was full press from the Kookaburras in the first 10 minutes as the

FIH Pro League: After straight wins, India fancy chances against Australia

Their confidence boosted after back-to-back wins, India will fancy their chances against formidable Australia in their third match of the men's FIH Pro League hockey here on Thursday. India outplayed Spain 4-1 before registering a thrilling 4-2 shootout win -- after 2-2 scoreline in regulation time -- over defending champions and world number one the Netherlands to begin their season with a bang. Historically, the head-to-head record between the two teams is heavily skewed in favour of Australia but the Indians have done better in recent times, especially in the last season of the FIH Pro League. India had beaten Australia 5-4 and 4-3 in shootout (after 2-2 in regulation time) in the two-legged tie in Rourkela last season, and the Harmanpreet Singh-led home side would look to continue their rare winning run against their mighty opponents. Australia are also coming into Thursday match at the Kalinga Stadium after two wins -- 4-3 against Spain and 5-0 against Ireland -- and they woul

FIH Pro League: Sreejesh hands India win over Netherlands in shootout

Veteran goalkeeper PR Sreejesh turned out to be the saviour as the Indian men's hockey team defeated world number one Netherlands 4-2 via a shoot-out in the FIH Pro League here on Sunday. Sreejesh made three fine saves in the shoot-out to hand India the bonus two points after both the teams were locked at 2-2 at the end of regulation 60 minutes. Netherlands took one points from the match. In the shoot-out, skipper Harmanpreet Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay and Shamsher Singh scored for world number three India. In the regulation time, Hardik Singh (13th minute) and Harmanpreet (58th) found the net for India, while Jip Janssen (30th) and Koen Bijen scored for the Dutch. Netherlands put the home team defence under pressure in the initial eight minutes of the match with play mostly restricted to the Indian circle. But the Indian defence dished out a solid performance to weather the initial storm. The Indians initially failed to keep possession of the ball but gained in