Team is ready to accept mistakes and rectify them, says captain Savita Punia

The Indian team captain was awarded the Goalkeeper of the Year at FIH Awards.

Savita Punia is one of the most experienced players representing India since 2008 guarding the goalpost. In the absence of Rani Rampal, she led India to the bronze medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham. Overall Savita Punia has 240 appearances for team India at the International level having debuted in the year 2008.

Savita Punia was awarded the Baljit Singh Goalkeeper of the Year award at the Hockey India Annual Awards in 2015 for the 1st time, for having phenomenal performances for India in international contributions and in 2022 is awarded the FIH goalkeeper of the year for the 2021-22 season. In an exclusive chat with Indian team captain Savita Punia, she talks about the team's preparations, Nations Cup etc.

Being one of the most experienced goalkeepers in the world. Could you brief us on how you evolved from the beginning of your career?

When I (Savita Punia) initially started playing did not think will play this long for more than a decade because I thought that the game requires high-level training and at that time did not have much knowledge. After every tournament, I look at the performance and see where to make improvements and better my gameplay.

There was a very small gap between the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games. How did the team adapt quickly after a disappointing end to WC?

We left India in the month of June and before leaving we knew there were back-to-back tournaments (World Cup and Commonwealth Games) within a small time frame. This was also the first time we were away from home for 2.5 to 3 months on a trot but we never let the performance go down and gave our best. Even at the World Cup, the team gave our best and the Commonwealth Games come once in four years which is also important. Fitness in the current days has become very crucial and we have improved a lot in that aspect.

The team created a lot of chances in the Pro League but it underperformed in converting them. Also attacking and defending the penalty corners were a big issue. How as a team are you working on them?

After Tokyo Olympics, there have been a lot of improvements. If you take any matches in the recent past we haven't lost any match one-sided. For the first time, I felt India had more attacking shots than the opponents but yes the finishing was not good and need to work on that part. 

The circle penetration was good but the main part was that we lacked penalty corner conversion which could have been better. There is always scope for improvement and we have started working on it.

The team is now ready to accept the mistakes and rectify them which I think has helped Indian women’s hockey excel in recent times. We help out each other rectify our mistakes irrespective of their experience. I take the feedback on my game from my players if any and even I help them to perform better the next time. The camaraderie overall has been good in helping out each other.

After the Tokyo Olympics do you think the pressure of performing well has increased at the global level?

The support we received after coming back to India after the Olympics was huge. It feels great with the support we have been receiving from the fans of late. After the performances in Tokyo, many have started following women’s hockey which wasn’t the case before. But will not take it as a pressure but as a responsibility to do well.

It is obvious that when we finished fourth in Tokyo people would want better performances at the World Cup and the Commonwealth Games but if we take it as pressure then the performance might also go down rather than enjoy the game.

All the players have their ups and downs which is part of the sport. 

Could you brief us about Janekke Schopmann after her appointment as a coach since the Tokyo Olympics?

Janekke Schopmann was appointed as the head coach after the Tokyo Olympics but she was with the Indian team since 2020. She had played an important role with our then-head coach in finishing a credible fourth at the Olympics. 

After the Tokyo Olympics got postponed we have one full year with Janneke discussing our game and the areas to improve. It was a great decision by Hockey India on appointing Janekke as the head coach as she is a very talented coach and knows about our strengths and weakness.

I personally feel Janekke Schopmann is one of the best coaches since I started playing in 2008. Every coach gives their best when they are with the team but Jannekke she totally instils different energy into the team. She herself has played for many years and has been an Olympian as well and with all these experiences she has always benefited our team.

Not many head coaches from what I have seen help train the goal Keepers separately. Janekke takes her time out and helps the Goal Keeper with routine training personally. She has played an important role in my development and the overall team’s goalkeeping development.

Apart from coaching she also trains us mentally. Many of us feel the pressure of playing important matches in bigger tournaments but she never says having pressure is not a bad thing. Every country and player will feel the pressure of playing at big stages and we need to adapt to that situation and play. These are a few small things which she helps improve our overall ability.

Janekke sometimes works more than 100 per cent looking at both the individual and team performance. As a team, we feel that when a coach can dedicate herself fully to the team then we need to put in more effort in the field than expected.

How have the preparations been going forward for the FIH Nations Cup?

Presently we are at the National Games being held in Gujarat. Our next camp will be from the 25th of October but we already had a camp before which went on well. The FIH Nations Cup is a very important tournament for us to qualify for the Pro League as our performance in the Pro League last time has helped us perform better.

After finishing third in the Pro League are you guys disappointed that the team has to play in the Nations Cup to qualify for the Pro League?

Yes, definitely we were a bit disappointed. In the first year itself, we finished 3rd performing well against quality opponents. In sports, we need to face many challenges and we are now taking this as one of the challenges. We have to explain to the junior players about these things as they are not aware of it but apart from this there are no regrets but rather perform better on the field and qualify for the Pro League.

What are your thoughts on Mumtaz Khan, who won the rising player of the year? How has she developed as a player and inside the dressing room?

Mumtaz has been in the junior setup for quite some time but has not trained with her much to date. She is a good young player and performed well in the Junior World Cup recently. Along with Mumtaz, there are many young players like Salima, Sharmila, Sangita, and Deepika to name a few who will be key for Indian women’s hockey going forward.