Buenos Aires: After a year-long break from the international games, the Indian women’s hockey team will become the first of India’s hockey teams to resume international matches as they play their first of eight matches scheduled during their tour of Argentina. Looking forward to their first competition since the outbreak of the pandemic, India Captain Rani emphasized on the importance of having the tour.
“I think this tour is really important for us in terms of resuming competitive hockey. We have a crucial year to look forward to, and with such matches against strong sides, we will be able to keep working hard towards our goal of preparing well for the Tokyo Olympics,” expressed the 26-year-old.
“It has been a strange period for sportspeople around the world, but to be resuming doing what we love the most, it is the best feeling. On behalf of my team, I would like to thank and highlight the efforts of both Hockey India and the Argentine federation for having organized this tour for us. We are looking forward to testing ourselves against some strong teams, and also understanding where we stand at the moment,” added the skipper.
“However, we also understand and take into consideration that we haven’t played an international match with the maximum intensity in these past 9-10 months, and that we might take time to get back into our groove, and that is what this tour is all about,” stated Rani, whose team faces the Argentine Junior Women’s Hockey Team on Sunday evening in the capital city.
India will kickstart their tour of Argentina with a match against the Argentine junior side on Monday (January 18).
Full Schedule, fixtures and live matches time (IST):
Monday, January 18: India vs Argentina Junior Women – 2:30 AM IST
Wednesday, January 20: India vs Argentina Junior Women – 2:30 AM IST
Saturday, January 23: India vs Argentina B – 2:30 AM IST
Monday, January 25: India vs Argentina B – 2:30 AM IST
Wednesday, January 27: India vs Argentina – 2:30 AM IST
Friday, January 29: India vs Argentina – 2:30 AM IST
Sunday, January 31: India vs Argentina – 2:30 AM IST
Monday, February 1: India vs Argentina – 2:30 AM IST
