New Delhi . To further strengthen the penalty corner capabilities of the Indian women’s hockey team, Netherlands’ legendary drag-flicker Teke Tekema has joined the team for a special training camp. This camp is being organized from 26 May to 21 June during the tour of Australia and New Zealand.
Under the guidance of head coach Sjoerd Marijne, the Indian team is preparing for the upcoming FIH Women’s Nations Cup New Zealand 2025-26, which will be played in Auckland from June 15 to 21.
The main objective of this special camp is to hone the technique of the Indian drag-flickers and improve their ability to convert penalty corners into goals. Indian players Deepika, Lalthantluangi and Annu are taking part in this training.
Teke Tekema is counted among the best drag-flickers in world hockey. Takema, a former Netherlands international, has represented his country in major tournaments such as the Olympics and the Hockey World Cup. He has more than 200 international matches and 221 international goals to his name.
This initiative is being run in collaboration with Anandana – The Coca-Cola India Foundation. Earlier, Anandana had also supported a special goalkeeping camp organized by renowned goalkeeping coach David Williamson in Bengaluru for the Indian women’s hockey team.
During the Australia tour, the Indian team played a four-match friendly series against hosts Australia at the Perth Hockey Stadium. Both teams won two matches each and ended the series 2-2.
The Indian team will reach New Zealand on June 3, where it will finalize its preparations through practice matches and training sessions ahead of the Nations Cup.
Head coach Sjoerd Marijne said, “Penalty corners are extremely important in modern hockey. The addition of an experienced specialist like Takea Takema will be very beneficial for our team. Apart from drag-flicking, he will also help in improving our defensive structure.”
He further said, “I have coached them before and our philosophy is very similar. The team already has good drag-flickers and also an excellent striker like Navneet Kaur. We have to make better use of the penalty corner opportunities and this camp will prove to be important in that direction.”
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