Hockey World Cup squad: Rani Rampal missing but India eye crown

Rani Rampal, the nucleus of the Indian women’s hockey team, will not be going to the World Cup in Spain and Netherlands from July 1-17 as she is yet to recover from her injury despite returning to the squad during the ongoing Pro League.

Hockey India (HI) on Tuesday named an 18-member contingent along with two replacement players that will be led by goalkeeper Savita Punia with Deep Grace Ekka as her deputy. Savita will be accompanied by Bichu Devi Kharibam in the goal while Deep Grace, Gurjit Kaur, Nikki Pradhan and Udita will be the defenders.

The midfield will be handled by Nisha, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Monika, Neha, Jyoti, Navjot Kaur, Sonika and Salima Tete while the forward line will feature the experienced Vandana Katariya, Lalremsiami, Navneet Kaur and Sharmila Devi. Akshata Abaso Dhekale and Sangita Kumari have been named as replacement players.

“We have chosen the best squad for the World Cup. It is a mix of experience and young talent who have shown great promise when they were given a chance against top teams in the FIH Pro League," said chief coach Janneke Schopman.

“Except Rani, who is still not fully recovered from injury rehabilitation, the team has all the players who were part of the Olympic campaign with inclusions like Jyoti and Sonika who have done well in their roles when given a chance. We will also have Sangita and Akshata who will travel with the team as replacement players. The team is absolutely excited and eager to begin their World Cup campaign and we will utilise the next 10 days to fine tune our game basis analysis from Pro League performances."

After guiding India to an unprecedented fourth place finish at the Tokyo Olympics last year, Rani was out of action for 10 months before finally being selected for the Pro League matches against Belgium and Netherlands. However, she only played one match—her 250th international—against Belgium in Antwerp before being left out of the squad again.

India will play their Pool B matches against England (July 3), China (July 5) and New Zealand (July 7) in Amstelveen with the top team qualifying for the quarter-finals while the No 2 and 3 teams will play the crossovers. India finished eighth in the last edition of the World Cup in London, losing to Ireland in the quarter-finals.

Squad:

Goalkeepers: Savita (captain), Bichu Devi Kharibam

Defenders: Deep Grace Ekka (vice-captain), Gurjit Kaur, Nikki Pradhan, Udita

Midfielders: Nisha, Sushila Chanu Pukhrambam, Monika, Neha, Jyoti, Navjot Kaur, Sonika, Salima Tete

Forwards: Vandana Katariya, Lalremsiami, Navneet Kaur, Sharmila Devi

Replacement players: Akshata Abaso Dhekale, Sangita Kumari

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