Hockey India Senior Women National Championship will begin on March 13 at Major Dhyanchand Hockey Stadium Pimpri in Pune, Maharashtra and the final will be held on March 23. A total of 27 teams divided into eight pools will compete for top honors.
Hockey India Senior Women National Championship 2024
The upcoming tournament is significant as it will serve as a platform to pick the next key prospect for the Indian women’s hockey team. The senior women’s team consists of most Indian captain Savita, most capped player Vandana Kataria, seasoned professionals Monika, important players like Navneet Kaur, Salima Tate and emerging talents like Deepika and Sangeeta Kumari. Everyone is ready to contest from their respective states.
Defending champions Hockey Madhya Pradesh are placed in Pool A along with Hockey Bihar and Chhattisgarh Hockey, while last year’s runners-up and this year’s hosts Hockey Maharashtra find themselves in Pool B along with Delhi Hockey and Kerala Hockey. Pool C consists of Hockey Jharkhand, Hockey Uttar Pradesh and Hockey Andhra Pradesh while Hockey Haryana, Hockey Le Puducherry and Hockey Assam will play in D grup .
A part of Hockey Association of Odisha, Hockey Chandigarh and Goans Hockey Pool E. Hockey Karnataka finds itself in Pool H alongside Hockey Manipur, Hockey Uttarakhand and Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu Hockey while Hockey Bengal, Tamil Nadu’s Hockey Unit, Hockey Gujarat and Telangana form Pool H.
The top teams from each pool will advance to the quarter-finals, scheduled for March 20, with the semifinals taking place on March 22. 3rd/4th place play-off on March 23, followed by the final in the evening.
Notably, 29 Indian international players will participate in the tournament, taking the level of hockey to new heights. Hockey Maharashtra will have Vaishnavi Bithal Phalke, Akshta Abso Dhekle and Rajni Itimarpu in their team while Marianna Kujur, Azmina Kujur and Jyoti Chhetri will be from the Odisha Hockey Association. Nikki Pradhan, Beauty Dongdong, Salima Tete and Sangeeta Kumari will be seen performing for Hockey Jharkhand while Baljit Kaur and Gurjit Kaur will represent Hockey Punjab.
Hockey Uttar Pradesh will see Mumtaz Khaner, Vandana Kataria and Bansari Solanki donning their colors while Bichu Devi Kharibam, Ishika Chaudhary and Lalremsiami will represent Hockey Manipur, Hockey Madhya Pradesh and Hockey Mizoram respectively. Hockey Haryana will field a star-studded line-up of 11 international players namely Monika, Navneet Kaur, Neha, Nisha, Deepika, Mahima Chowdhury, Jyoti, Sabita, Sharmila Devi, Sonika and Udita.
Speaking about the upcoming event, Hockey India president Dr. Dilip Tirki said, “It’s great to see so many international players making it to their respective state teams. It not only improves the level of hockey but also helps youngsters achieve something. Valuable experience playing with senior professionals. Hockey India Senior Women’s National Championship A huge platform for all the players and we hope to find many talents who can represent the Indian women’s hockey team in the future.”
Hockey Madhya Pradesh will play Chhattisgarh Hockey in the opening match of the tournament on March 13 at 0700 IST.