'Defence, PC conversion needs improvement'- Indian coach Janneke Schopman

After putting the Asian Games' disappointment behind them and winning the Women's Asian Champions Trophy tournament in Ranchi, the Indian women's hockey team head coach Janneke Schopman feels the team needs to improve on defence and penalty corner conversion.

India produced a brilliant show in the Asian Champions Trophy in Ranchi to win the gold medal for the second time in the history of the tournament.

Despite India conceding two goals in the competition, one each against Thailand and China, Schopman has identified areas where the team needs improvement.

"A lot of things went well for us but we have many areas to improve. Our discipline was a little shaky as we got too many cards in the tournament. We also need to improve on our referral," Janneke told media during a virtual interaction on Wednesday.

"Our penalty corner defense and our penalty corner attack are ongoing areas of attention. Defending is improving, but (it is) still something we have to keep focusing on," she added.

The addition of mental conditioning coach Peter Haberl helped the Indian team and took some pressure off Janneke's shoulder.

“With the help of Peter Haberl, who joined us in the Asian Champions Trophy, we were able to address things that previously might have been solely focused on my shoulders, whereas I'm not an expert in the mental side of things,” Schopman said.

"Ultimately, it's not so much about just playing in Asian Games and winning or losing. It's always about us and how we can be better and I think that is what we want for the Olympic qualifier as well — leaving no stone unturned,” Schopman added.

Ranked sixth in the world after the ACT win, India will return to Ranchi in January to participate in the FIH Olympics qualifiers. The tournament will feature eight teams - Germany, India, New Zealand, Japan, Chile, the United States, Italy, and the Czech Republic in Pool B.