India women’s hockey team will look to begin life under new head coach Harendra Singh on a winning note as they face Singapore in their Asia Cup opener on Saturday.

India have been placed in Pool A alongside China, Malaysia and Singapore. They will fancy their chances of progressing to the next round of matches considering they are the second highest ranked team in the group. China is eight in the world with India in 12th position. Pool B consists of Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea and Thailand.

However, Harendra knows that the road ahead isn’t an easy one. This is his first stint with a women’s team and there will definitely be pressure to perform after the men’s team’s success in Dhaka.

“First of all Harendra Singh is one of the best coaches in the country and he has immense experience with the men’s team. He does not have much of experience with the women’s team. But I don’t think that will be a factor,” former India hockey captain Viren Rasquinha to The Field.

However, he backed Harendra to raise the standard of women’s hockey given the wealth of experience he has. “I think the challenge is not that he does not have experience of women’s hockey but the challenge here is to raise the standard of the women’s team. I am confident that he can do that because he has proved it with good results with junior teams over the years including the junior team which won the World Cup at the start of the year. He has the ability to raise the standard of the women’s hockey team.”

2004 Olympian Prabhjot Singh concurs too.

“Harendra has a lot of experience and he has also coached us and has won many medals for the country including the Junior World Cup triumph. First time he has been given the women’s team and with the experience and strategy he has, it is going to do them a world of good for the women’s team,” Singh told The Field.

An exciting challenge

With India ranked fourth in the tournament, an intriguing challenge awaits them. Unlike the men’s squad, who are ranked No 1 in Asia, the women’s team have to dig deep if they are to win the tournament.

“It is a different scenario for the women’s team compared because the men were favourites. They had to go out there and win it. The women are fourth in Asia, for them the challenge is to upset the calculations and maybe get into the final and try to win it. However, Harendra is the right man for the job and I wish him and the team all the best,” said Rasquinha.

“China and Japan are brilliant teams. Yes it is tough to beat them but it is not impossible. Harendra’s passion and his training style will give the team a huge boost of confidence. If the team is confident then they can beat anyone on their day. This is a big challenge, no doubt. Asia Cup is a huge test for Harendra,” said Prabhjot.

“If they finish in top-three then I will consider it to be a huge success given the time they have had together,” he added.

World Cup qualification on the line

If India manage to win the Asia Cup, they will automatically qualify for the Women’s World Cup in London next year. However, the road ahead is not an easy one for the team.

“It will be a huge bonus if we win the Asia Cup and get automatic qualification which will be massive. Considering we have to overcome China, Korea and Japan it will be a big ask from the team. If we have qualified for the Olympics then we should 100% be targeting World Cup qualification. Besides the Asia Cup there will be other chances as well,” said Rasquinha.

For the women’s team, the transition from former coach Sjoerd Marijne, who coaches the men’s team now, to Harendra is bound to be difficult. Both have different styles of coaching the game and with Harendra being with the team for two months now, is it sufficient time for the team to make the transition?

“It shouldn’t be too difficult. Initially it will be a problem because after managing the men’s team he has suddenly got the women’s team. It will be a bit difficult at first because women’s hockey in terms of pace and other factors is completely different form men’s hockey. He has been with the team for two months and I am sure there will be a good understanding by now,” said Prabhjot.

It won’t be easy, but Harendra will be looking towards a strong performance with World Cup qualification as his priority.