New Delhi, October 22
Indian hockey players Navneet Kaur and Mumtaz Khan expressed their happiness on the introduction of the Hockey India League (HIL) for women and feel that the tournament will make several stars which will help the women's side break their Olympic medal drought.
Both the hockey players spoke to ANI on the sidelines of the final of the 4th Hockey India Senior Women Inter-Departmental National Championship 2024 on Monday, between IndianOil Ltd and the Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB). The tournament was won by RSPB by 3-1.
Speaking to ANI, Navneet of the Railways team, scoring 48 goals in 161 appearances for India, said, "We want to thank Hockey India for organising HIL for us. We are all excited for us. Our newer players are really excited. Foreign players are going to play, we can get to learn a lot from them."
She said that the HIL will be beneficial for the women's team, who want to end their Olympic medal drought, having not captured a medal at the grandest stage.
"Last year, we played well in all tournaments, but could not qualify for Olympics. HIL is going to be beneficial for us. Youngsters will be given a platform to gain some experience and mingle with international players. They will get to know how to play at this level before they play for India. Even the men's team learnt a lot from HIL," she said.
The revamped HIL 2024-25 will feature 8 men's teams and 6 women's teams, marking the first standalone women's league in the country that will run concurrently with the men's competition. In its previous edition back in 2017, Kalinga Lancers had become the champion, beating Dabang Mumbai for the title.
The league will get underway on December 28 with matches played in two venues -- Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Astroturf Hockey Stadium in Ranchi, Jharkhand, and Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela, Odisha. The women's league will conclude on January 26, 2025 in Ranchi, while the men's final is slated for February 1, 2025 in Rourkela.
On the upcoming Asian Champions Trophy in November, Navneet said that the whole team is excited to play the tournament at home.
"Keeping in mind what kind of hockey we have to play there, we are focusing on our speed and endurance in the camp. The preparations are going on really well. Last time we played really well in Jharkhand, hoping to do well this time too," she added.
The Women's Asian Champions Trophy will be hosted in the city of Rajgir in Bihar. The event will be a joint venture between Hockey India and the Bihar Government and will be held at the newly-developed Rajgir Hockey Stadium from November 11 to 20.
India is the most successful team in its history with two titles and will be defending the trophy against China, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea and Thailand.
On playing the inter-departmental championship and winning it, Navneet said, "It was a nice experience. The team played really well from the start and played really well in the final. Everyone put in an effort and it feels happy to have won."
Indian hockey forward Mumtaz also said about the Hockey India League, "This is the best opportunity for girls. Our girls will come out as stars after this. Nationals are going on so nice and now this is happening. These small things can make a lot of difference. I feel we will win the Olympic medal for India one day because of it."
On playing the Asian Champions Trophy, she added, "We are excited. It is happening at home, in Bihar. We have prepared well and want to play well as a team to defend our title."