Asian Games is most important for us: Sjoerd Marijne

India women’s hockey team with head coach Sjoerd Marijne (centre) during their recent tour of Argentina. Pic/Hockey India’s Instagram

The Indian women's hockey team (World No. 9) gave an impressive account of themselves on their recent tour to Argentina, finishing the four-match series against the World No. 2 outfit 2-2.

With three major tournaments on the horizon - Nations Cup (June 15 to 21), World Cup (August 15 to 30) and Asian Games (September 19 to October 4) - chief coach Sjoerd Marijne believes the team is on the right path, though he did flag some concerns in the finishing department. "There are always worrying signs and areas to improve. Our finishing was not good enough on the Argentina tour. That happened because we only entered the circle an average of 10-12 times in the game," Marijne said during a virtual press conference on Friday.

However, there were plenty of positives. "On the mental side of things, we did really well and coped with the level [of pressure] they put us under. Our team has gained experience now and knows they can beat a World No. 2 side. That gives us a lot of confidence. The most important thing that I told my team was, ‘this is the benchmark, girls.' If we want to be a top team like them, we have to be sprinting throughout the match. On the fitness side, I was happy with the improvement. The girls had the fitness, but they didn't always know how to use it. But now they know exactly what to do when they have the ball, and when they don't," said Marijne, 52, who returned to coach the team for his second tenure in January.

Marijne reiterated that the team's ultimate goal in 2026 is winning the Asian Games gold medal (for direct qualification to the LA 2028 Olympics), while the other tournaments, including the World Cup, will serve as a barometer to measure the team's progress en route to achieving their target. "The Asian Games [in Japan] is the most important, but it doesn't mean we don't want to do well in the other tournaments. We will be using the other events to see if we have improved enough," said Marijne, who previously masterminded India's second-place finishes at the 2018 Asian Games and 2018 Asian Champions Trophy.