5 Odia players named in 33-member Indian women’s hockey camp

New Delhi: Hockey India has named a 33 core probable list, which includes five players from Odisha, for the national women’s coaching camp, beginning Monday at the Sports Authority of India campus in Bangalore.

The players will report to chief coach Sjoerd Marijne for the three-week camp that concludes September 22, following which the world number 10 team will travel to England for a five-match bilateral series.

“It was a good experience at the Olympic Test Event in Tokyo, and now we will focus on the Olympic Qualifiers. We will use this camp to stay in the rhythm, and to maintain our levels going into the Qualifiers,” said Marijne.

“We also have a tour of England coming up, which will also help us because playing matches against a strong opposition is good for our rhythm, and also gives us the chance to see where we can improve,” he

International Hockey Federation Thursday announced that the Indian women’s team will be playing its FIH Olympic Qualifiers at home, and Marijne said it will be a boost for his team.

“It will be the first time for a lot of our girls that they will be playing at home so we are all very excited. For us, it is important to focus on our game, and not worry about other factors involved.

“However, we will have a lot of people watching us, and I am sure it will serve as a huge boost to all the members of our team,” said the Dutchman.

Core probables

GOALKEEPERS: Savita, Rajani Etimarpu, Bichu Devi Kharibam

DEFENDERS: Deep Grace Ekka, Reena Khokhar, Suman Devi Thoudam, Sunita Lakra, Salima Tete, Manpreet Kaur, Gurjit Kaur, Rashmita Minz, Mahima Choudhary, Nisha

MIDFIELDERS: Nikki Pradhan, Monika, Neha Goyal, Lilima Minz, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Chetna, Reet, Karishma Yadav, Sonika, Namita Toppo

FORWARDS: Rani, Lalremsiami, Vandana Katariya, Navjot Kaur, Navneet Kaur, Rajwinder Kaur, Jyoti, Sharmila Devi, Priyanka Wankhede, Udita.

PTI