Tokyo Olympics: Germany a good side, we have to be on top of our game, says skipper Rani
Jul 25, 2021
Tokyo [Japan], July 25 : The Indian Women's Hockey Team showed a lot of character when they took on World Number 1 Netherlands in their first Tokyo Olympics match on Saturday.
Even though the national side went down 5-1, they put up a strong fight throughout the match. The Indian Women's Hockey Team will certainly look to make improvements when they take on the World Number 3 side Germany at the Oi Hockey Stadium on Monday.
The German side defeated Great Britain 2-1 in their first Pool A match on Sunday.
The Indian Women's Hockey Team Captain Rani, who scored the only goal for India in their match against the Netherlands, expressed that the team can take a lot of confidence from the way they played against the Dutch.
"We can definitely take a lot of positives from our first match. We played an aggressive brand of hockey, especially in the first half. We created many chances and also capitalised on one chance in the first quarter itself. We were in control for the better part of the match against the best side in the world and that has definitely raised our confidence," said Rani.
Speaking about India's next match against Germany, Rani said, "Germany are a good side too. We have to be on top of our game. We have looked at the mistakes we made in our first match and we will try to rectify them in our next match. We have to stay positive and keep backing our skills throughout the competition."
Indian Women's Hockey Chief Coach Sjoerd Marijne expressed that the team has looked at the footage of their match against the Netherlands and noted down the key points they need to work on.
"We have watched the match against the Netherlands together and have spoken about the points we need to improve and we are currently focusing on that. Germany are also a very strong side. If we can be consistent during the whole match then the result will be better," Marijne said
