Indian women’s hockey team ready to show strength in Nations Cup, first match against America

New Delhi. The Indian women’s hockey team is all set to begin its campaign in the FIH Hockey Women’s Nations Cup 2025-26 being held in Auckland, New Zealand. The Indian team, led by captain Salima Tete, aims to win the title and ensure a place in the FIH Hockey Pro League to be held next year.

India will start its Pool A campaign against America on June 15, while after that it has to face Japan and Uruguay. The winning team of this tournament with participation from eight countries will get a place in the prestigious FIH Hockey Pro League.

The special thing is that India is entering this tournament after a tough four-match tour with Australia, where they showed great spirit against one of the strongest teams in the world on their home ground. After losing the first match by a close margin, the Indian team bounced back and won the next two matches, but Australia won the last match. With this, this friendly series ended in a tie at 2-2.

This tour gave many hopeful signs for the Indian team. The team showed strength under pressure, maintained strategic discipline at every stage of the game and displayed tremendous attacking play. These performances have further cemented the team’s progress in recent months.

Before the start of the Nations Cup, Indian women’s hockey team head coach Sjoerd Marijne expressed confidence in the team’s preparation and thinking. He said that the Australia tour was very good preparation for us. We are moving in the right direction as a team. Now our focus is on the Nations Cup and we want to take full advantage of this opportunity.

Marijne stressed the importance of remaining calm and collected in such tournaments. He said that in tournaments like this it is often the small moments that make the biggest difference. We have to remain disciplined, remain united as a team and take full advantage of the opportunities given to us. Our aim is not only to achieve good results but also to create a strong foundation for the future. We know the expectations are high and the players are motivated to give their best for the country.

Hockey India President Dr. Dilip Tirkey wished the team all the best for success before the tournament. She said that the Women’s Nations Cup is a big opportunity for our women’s team to show their progress and courage at the international level. The players have worked very hard to prepare for this tournament and I am confident that they will play with confidence and enthusiasm in every match to win. He said that making a place in the FIH Hockey Pro League is an important objective of ours, but it is equally important to create a team capable of continuously competing with the best teams in the world. On behalf of Hockey India, I wish the team and support staff all the best for the tournament and hope that they will bring glory to the country.

india pool stage matches
June 15: India vs. USA June 16: India vs. Japan June 18: India vs. Uruguay