New Indian Express: Loads of Benefits for Women’s Hockey

By Rani Rampal

Indian women’s hockey, to me, is a history untold. At the same time, I will say it’s very close to unfolding. We have just come out of three decades of darkness, in which we were away from the Olympic Games elite.

The same way India was considered not long ago as a touring team; a nation wary of hosting major events and alike. This has completely vanished now.

With a striking symphony, Hockey India and the FIH refurbished India’s image. The nation is now a world hockey destination. I need not repeat the obvious.

The ongoing Hockey India League — where the world has come to play on our soil — is a shining example of India’s transformation. Our best dish out their best against the world’s best.

We girls are part of a transforming India. Therefore, we watch each match of the HIL with a keen eye. The matches are telecast in the evenings. It suits us perfectly to combine relaxation with entertainment. Besides, there is a lot to learn.

Hockey doesn’t differentiate men from women as some sports inherently do. There is no variation in the men’s and women’s game. Girls don’t play for a lesser time, or with less players, for example. Match duration is 60 minutes for both sexes, unlike three-set finals for ladies against five sets for men’s in Grand Slam tennis.

On the turf, we sweat as much as men. We hit the target as hard as men, run fast, scoop high, and also push long as men do. Not for nothing is women’s hockey, I dare say, is equally — if not more — popular in countries like England, New Zealand, Germany, USA, Argentina and Holland. Some may just take us casually — with the ‘Oh! Girls…’ kind of attitude. Yes we are.

But, we are with a mission, and with loads of guts. We have broken many barriers and have come out with flying colours. We long to emulate the HIL to push our limits, raise the benchmark higher, and thus create history at the Rio Olympics.

The kind of matches we see in the HIL only reaffirms our faith in ourselves, while helping us understand the long road that we now need to travel. Women have many takeaways from the HIL.

Therefore, I request our country men, who relished the success of our story portrayed in the film Chak de India, to watch and follow the HIL. It is sheer pleasure; a spectacular spectacle.