India begin Women's Hockey Asia Cup 2022 campaign against Malaysia

India will try to reclaim the crown in 2022 after winning the tournament in 2017.

Ahead of the Indian Women's Hockey Team starting their campaign at the Women's Hockey Asia Cup on 21st January, Captain and team's ace goalkeeper Savita expressed that the team's experience will be the key to their performance at the prestigious quadrennial continental tournament which is also a qualifying event for the FIH Women's World Cup 2022. She said, "The best part about this team is that, many of us have been playing together for a long time and I feel this experience and team camaraderie will give us the edge over other teams. Our main priority will be to remain focused on our game and ensure we execute the plans against each team without making errors."

The defending Women's hockey Asia Cup Champions India are grouped in Pool A along with Japan, Malaysia and Singapore. They will play their first match of the tournament on 21st January against Malaysia. Savita emphasized that getting off to a good start will give the team the right momentum. "We have played Malaysia quite a few times in the past and they are a good side. Doing well against them will give us the right start to the tournament. As a team, we believe in focusing on our own game and not worry too much about what the opponent team can or cannot do. We just want to play to our strength," added Savita, who is leading the team in absence of Rani. 

Savita further highlighted that team's experience at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 has instilled a 'never-give-up' attitude and she believes the players will fight till the last minute. "One of the good qualities of the team is that, we have learnt to fight till the end. We don't give up if we are down by a few goals. I feel these aspects will matter when we play quality teams in an important tournament like this where the qualification for FIH Women's World Cup is at stake," she stated. 

Following their first match against Malaysia on the opening day, the defending Women's Hockey Asia Cup Champions India will play Japan on 23 January and will take on Singapore in their last pool A match on 24 January. The Semi Finals will be played on 26 January and the final match on 28 January. 

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