Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, June 22: Savita Punia will lead the Indian team as Hockey India announced the 18-member Indian women’s squad for the FIH Women’s Hockey World Cup to be held in Netherlands and Spain from July 1 to July 17, 2022. This will be the team’s first major competition since the memorable Tokyo Olympics campaign.
As has been the case in the FIH Pro League games this season, Deep Grace Ekka will assist goalkeeper Savita Punia.
India, who lost to England in the Olympic Games bronze medal playoff, is placed in Pool B with China, New Zealand, and England. On July 3, India will face England in their first match.
Rani Rampal, who just made her long-anticipated comeback from an injury layoff that prevented her from competing in the Tokyo Olympics, won her 250th cap during the first leg of the FIH Pro League match against Belgium in Antwerp, although she was absent from the games that followed.
Hockey India cited coach Janneke Schopman as saying that Rani had not fully recovered from her rehab and that the rest of the India squad had a familiar appearance.
Savita and Bichu Devi Kharibam are two of the 20 players in the Indian team. Along with midfielders Nisha, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Monika, Neha, Jyoti, Navjot Kaur, Sonika, and Salima Tete, defenders Deep Grace Ekka, Gurjit Kaur, Nikki Pradhan, and Udita have been picked to the squad.
