“Every match is crucial,” says Indian Women’s Hockey ace forward Vandana Katariya

Amstelveen (Netherlands): Emphasizing the importance of doing well in each of the group stage matches at the FIH Hockey Women’s World Cup Spain and Netherlands 2022, experienced striker Vandana Katariya said, “Each match in the group stage will be crucial and we cannot take any team to be easy. The most important aspect for us is to be consistent in every single quarter and be the best we can be without worrying too much about the opponent. This is something we have learnt over the years and it has really worked for us.”

The Indian Team will take on England on 3rd July in their campaign opener in pool B. In their second match, they will play China on 5th July followed by a match against New Zealand on 7th July in Amstelveen, the Netherlands. “We have played practice matches against Chile and Ireland. Both were very good as we were able to practice some tactical moves for the upcoming games and were able to get used to the field which is always easier when you train on it,” explained Vandana.

With just one day left before the team plays their first game, the excitement among players is palpable. “We have one more training session on Friday and we are ready to go. It will be a very interesting and intense World Cup and I anticipate matches to be quite close as almost five to six teams on par with each other,” she added.

With the marquee tournament’s first match being played today between Spain and Canada, Vandana appealed to the fans to follow the matches and rally their support for the Indian Team. She said, “When we were playing the Tokyo Olympics 2020, we were unaware of the kind of support we were getting from home in India where people were glued to their TV sets.”

“We got so much love and appreciation after we returned, and that meant a lot for us and it motivated us further to attain greater achievements. I hope the fans show us similar support and watch the matches live. We want to win a medal for the fans, for the country and end the wait for a medal in a prestigious global event.”

On 3rd July, India will take on England in their first pool B match at 2000 hrs IST. The matches will be live on Star Sports 1 and streamed on Disney+ Hotstar.