Hockey
Hockey India announces women's squad for Asian Champions Trophy 2023
Jharkhand Women's Asian Champions Trophy Ranchi 2023 is set to take place from 27th October to 5th November
Indian Women's Hockey Team (Hockey India)
Hockey India, on Wednesday, announced a 20-member Indian Women's Hockey Team that will be participating at the prestigious Jharkhand Women's Asian Champions Trophy Ranchi 2023, scheduled to be held on October 27-November 5.
The Indian team, which recently claimed the bronze medal at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou, will be competing in the tournament alongside Japan, China, Korea, Malaysia, and Thailand.
The team will be led by Savita Punia with Deep Grace Ekka her deputy. India will open their campaign in the tournament against Thailand on October 27 and then follow it up with a match against Malaysia on October 28. India will take on China in their third game on October 30, and compete against Japan on October 31.
India will play their final pool game against Korea on November 2. The semifinals and the summit clash of the tournament will be played on November 4 and 5, respectively.
Bichu Devi Kharibam has been named as Savita's standby in the squad while Nikki Pradhan, Udita, Ishika Chaudhary, and Deep Grace Ekka have been named as defenders.
Nisha, Salima Tete, Neha, Navneet Kaur, Sonika, Monika, Jyoti, and Baljeet Kaur form the midfield, while Lalremsiami, Sangita Kumari, Deepika, and Vandana Katariya have been named as the forwards in the squad. Meanwhile, Sharmila Devi and Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke will also travel with the squad as the backup options.
Speaking on the upcoming competition, chief coach Janneke Schopman said, "It is an important tournament for us to continue our momentum and our steady improvement as a team. While we performed well at the Asian Games to claim the Bronze medal, the upcoming tournament will give us a chance to further improve our standings against our Asian challengers. We will get a chance to put our learnings from Hangzhou into action and test ourselves once again. With the tournament happening in Ranchi, Jharkhand, we are eager to perform our best in front of home fans, and showcase our growth as a team."
Indian Women's Hockey Team:
GOALKEEPERS
Savita (Captain)
Bichu Devi Kharibam
DEFENDERS
Nikki Pradhan
Udita
Ishika Chaudhary
Deep Grace Ekka (Vice-Captain)
MIDFIELDERS
Nisha
Salima Tete
Neha
Navneet Kaur
Sonika
Monika
Jyoti
Baljeet Kaur
FORWARDS
Lalremsiami
Sangita Kumari
Deepika
Vandana Katariya
REPLACEMENT PLAYERS
Sharmila Devi
Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke
