Over the last couple of year, the Indian women’s hockey team has struggled with converting the penalty corners, and getting goals through the drag-flicks. To address this issue, the Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist, Rupinder Pal Singh is working with the team, ahead of the FIH Hockey Olympic Qualifiers in Ranchi.
Rupinder is at SAI Bengaluru, and is there with the team for a five-day camp. India’s drag-flick mainstay Gurjit Singh is looking to make the most of this exposure. “We are learning new things each day and looking to further improve our game by focusing on specific aspects that need refinement. Rupinder has been instrumental in guiding us. As we gear up for the upcoming tournaments, we are confident that the lessons learned here will contribute significantly to our performance on the field,” Gurjit was quoted as saying by The Bridge.
At the Asian Games, where the women’s team won a bronze medal, only 16 goals came out of 69 opportunities for the team. Deepika, who is India’s newer addition to the drag-flick team, said Rupinder has adviced them to pick the ball faster.
“He shared insights on the first rushers, how they have become fearless and close down on the ball faster than before. To counter this, he advised us to pick up the ball faster.
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“We also picked his brain on how to beat the first rusher, determining the line the rusher follows, where to get the ball stopped, which angle to take the shot in, and how to deal with mis-trapped balls,” noted Deepika.
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