Indian women's hockey team resumes training for Asian Games

BENGALURU: Barely a week after finishing fifth at the FIH World Cup in Belgium, Salima Tete and her teammates were back at the SAI South Centre here, preparing for their biggest assignment of the year — the Asian Games starting in Japan on Sept 19.

With little time between the two competitions, the Indian women’s hockey team has hardly had a chance to savour or celebrate an impressive World Cup campaign. “I just got a text from a friend asking about the celebrations, given we did well at the World Cup. But the celebrations have to wait. We can enjoy afterwards. Things are going very fast, and we have to move on to the next one,” chief coach Sjoerd Marijne said.

The focus now, the Dutchman added, is on building on their World Cup performance. “We paused and reflected on what we achieved. I told the girls to be very proud of what we’ve done. But we need to go further and do better than at the World Cup. What we did there may not be enough at the Asian Games. They need to stay focused,” he said.

Striker Lalremsiami summed up the intensity of the turnaround, revealing that the players have not even had time for a cheat meal since returning to training. “We can’t afford to have a cheatmeal day now,” she quipped.

India won bronze at the previous edition of the Asian Games and had to take the qualifier route to secure their place at the Paris Olympics. This time, with an Olympic berth for the 2028 Los Angeles Games at stake, nothing less than gold will be the target.

“I know the expectations are higher. We are a very strong contender for gold. But before the gold medal, we need to win other matches. That’s why we must give our best every day. Of course, you go into a tournament to achieve the highest reward, and that is an Olympic berth,” Marijne said.