Laussane, June 3 (Agency) Indian women’s hockey team are set to begin their campaign at the inaugural edition of the FIH Hockey 5s, starting from June 4. Rajani Etimarpu-led side will square off against Uruguay in their opening encounter. They will also compete against Poland later on the same day. India will face off against the hosts Switzerland and South Africa, respectively on June 5. “All the teams are playing for the first time in this format. So, all the teams are expected to be at the same level. We want to go and play hockey, showcase our skills, and enjoy ourselves,” said Etimarpu. “We are glad and excited to play in FIH Hockey 5s. We have worked hard on the training grounds, and have tried to adjust our game plan as per the format. We hope we can give Uruguay and Poland a tough contest on the first day of the competition,” she added. Meanwhile, vice-captain Mahima Choudhary also stressed on the importance of the upcoming matches, and talked about team’s strategy for this format of the game.
“Every team participating here wants to win the tournament. It is a good opportunity for our players to get exposure and gain experience of playing under pressure situations. “Everyone in the Indian Women’s Hockey Team wants to showcase and represent the nation well at the inaugural FIH Hockey 5s tournament. We hope we can deliver good performances,” she said. Hockey5s is a super-fast, highly skilful, short format of hockey which is designed to be adaptable to multiple surfaces, environments and space. Hockey5s is an invasion game played between two teams with 4 field players and a goalkeeper.