Hockey
"Great feeling to qualify for Pro League," says Indian skipper Savita Punia after FIH Nations Cup win
Indian Women's hockey team arrived at IGI Airport early on Monday morning without much fanfare after winning the inaugural FIH Nations Cup and qualifying for the FIH Pro League.
Delhi: As the national capital gripped further in the typical Delhi cold, the Indian Women's hockey team arrived at Terminal 3 of IGI Airport early on Monday morning without much fanfare after winning the inaugural FIH Nations Cup and qualifying for the FIH Pro League.
Led by goalkeeper Savita Punia, India played flawless hockey and was invincible on their road to glory after winning all the games.
FIH Nations Cup is the first major trophy won by Savita Punia as captain of the Indian team.
Talking about the victory, Savita Punia told The Bridge, "I am very happy and thrilled. As a team, we have worked hard and everybody turned up when needed. We functioned as a unit off the field and on the field. It is a great feeling to win this trophy and qualify for the FIH Pro League."
India started the tournament with a confident win against Chile and continued the momentum to defeat Japan and South Africa in the group stage. Qualifying as the top team from Pool B, India came up against a stern Irish side in the semi-finals.
With both teams finishing 1-1 in the normal time, the game went to the penalty shootout. Savita Punia was at her best like she has been all year and allowed only one Irish goal to power India to the finals.
"I was not under pressure at all. I was confident as we have faced such situations before also. We could have won the game in normal time only but the Irish team fought hard. Our conversations were about winning the game even if it goes to the shootout. The team was confident as a unit with everyone believing the takers and goalkeeper also (laughs)," Savita said about the tense moments during the shootout.
India defeated Spain in the finals courtesy of a penalty corner goal from Gurjit Kaur in the first quarter of the game.
As India secured the FIH Pro League spot with this win, they displayed mental fortitude and exceptional team game in the tough moments.
Coach Janeke Schopman earlier mentioned the importance of team unity and mental health. "I'm very excited to see how the other players will step up for the team. Team unity is something non-negotiable for me and my players know it", Schopman had told The Bridge before leaving for FIH Nations Cup and it is certain that her players stepped up to the occasion.
Indian women's hockey team went through a roller-coaster ride in the year 2022. They finished third in the FIH Pro League, ninth in the Hockey World Cup, won the bronze medal at the Commonwealth Games before being crowned the FIH Nations Cup champions.
Reflecting back on the roller-coaster year, captain Savita Punia said, "It was a brilliant year for the Indian women's hockey team. We had a great year as the Commonwealth Games medal came after such a long wait. We participated in the FIH Pro League for the first time and finished third. It is a great achievement and we will continue to build on this. Our immediate focus is going to be Asian Games next year."
India has multiple challenges coming next year and it will be interesting to see how this Indian team approaches those challenges with this newfound confidence.