'Ready to face tougher teams in Olympic Qualifiers in Ranchi': Savita Punia

The Indian women’s hockey team is unfazed to take on tougher teams at the upcoming FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier Ranchi 2024, scheduled to be held in Ranchi from 13th to 19th January, asserted captain Savita Punia following a successful campaign at the Asian Women's Champions Trophy in Ranchi.

Eight national teams, including Germany, Japan, Chile, Czech Republic, New Zealand, United States, Italy, and India, are set to compete in the upcoming tournament to secure their spots for the 2024 Paris Olympics.

The teams are divided into two pools, with the Indian team placed in Pool B alongside New Zealand, the United States, and Italy, while Pool A consists of Germany, Japan, Chile, and the Czech Republic.

During the pool stage of the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier Ranchi 2024, each team will face every other team in their respective group once. The top two teams from each group will then progress to the semifinals scheduled for January 18. The final and third and fourth-place match is slated to take place on January 19. Notably, the teams that will finish in the top 3 will secure their qualification for the Paris Olympics.

'We are confident in our abilities'

"We are confident in our abilities, and the rankings of opposing teams don't faze us as we are ready to face all the tough teams that will be coming to India for the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier Ranchi 2024," captain Savita said.

When asked about the probability of facing Germany during the later stage of the tournament, she said, “We played Germany in July, so we know what we're up against."

Chief coach Janneke Schopman echoed Savita's confidence, saying that there was a lot to learn from the Asian Women's Championships Trophy, where they were undefeated champions. India beat China, Asian Games gold medallist, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and Thailand en route to clinching the title.

"A lot of things went well for us, but there are always areas where we can improve. We need to avoid unnecessary cards and make better use of our referrals. Similarly, with our attacking style of play, we have to face a lot of teams that play with 11 players behind their 25-yard line and we have to get better at creating opportunities playing against a closed defence," she added.

“This tournament showed we are a tough team. So, we will continue to focus on ourselves, look for ways to improve and leave no stone unturned in our preparation for the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier Ranchi 2024. After the tournament, we are back on track and we need to keep doing the right things on the way to the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier Ranchi 2024.

We are familiar with New Zealand, we played the United States as well in the FIH Pro League last year, but most importantly I am happy to take on these tough teams at home,” Janneke Schopman elaborated on the preparations.

The top three teams each from Ranchi as well as from Valencia, Spain Qualifiers, will join hosts France, Australia, the Netherlands, China, Argentina, and South Africa at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Talking about the crowd support in Ranchi during the Champions Trophy, Savita said, "The support we received in Ranchi spurred us on. Home crowd can be an added pressure sometimes but we were mentally prepared. Janneke advised that such occasions come by rarely and that we should embrace them. The residents of Ranchi turned up in droves and we couldn’t let them down, we had to put on a show for them. The team knows that we will receive the same backing during the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifier Ranchi 2024 as well and if people are coming to support us the onus is on us to repay their faith."