The Great Gamble
There was a time, not too long ago, when the mere mention of money was anathema in sports ~ professionals were allowed in Wimbledon for the first time in 1968, and in the Olympics only from 1988.
Legendary player and former captain of India’s women’s Hockey Team Rani Rampal is all set to make a comeback to International Hockey. In the recent squad announced by India for the 22-member team for the tour of South Africa her name was also added.
Notably, the upcoming tour for South Africa will be commencing from January 16, 2023, in Cape Town. For the first time since the FIH Women’s Hockey Pro League 2021/22 match against Belgium, the seasoned forward will rejoin the team.
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From January 16 and January 29, 2023, the Indian team that won the first FIH Women’s Nations Cup 2022 held in Valencia, will play 4 matches against South Africa and 3matches against the Netherlands.
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“The South Africa tour is a brilliant opportunity for us to build on our performance in the Nations Cup. Playing both South Africa as well as The Netherlands on this tour provides us with everything we need to learn about ourselves come the Asian Games.”
“Playing the World number 1 Netherlands will most likely expose our vulnerabilities and will also show where we are with our performance and growth. Playing South Africa, where we most likely will have more of the ball, will give us the opportunity to improve in ball possession areas,” IANS quoted Indian Hockey team’s chief coach Janneke Schopman as saying.
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