"National Women's Hockey League a watershed moment": HI secretary general

RANCHI: The secretary general of Hockey India, Bhola Nath Singh said that the National Women's Hockey League is a watershed moment for Indian women's domestic hockey structure and will raise the bar for domestic competition.

The much-anticipated National Women's Hockey League 2024-25 kicked off on Tuesday at the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh AstroTurf Hockey Stadium in Ranchi.

Sandeep Pradhan, Director General of the Sports Authority of India (SAI), witnessed the opening ceremony and interacted with players from all eight participating teams. These teams are the cream of Indian women's domestic hockey, having qualified from the recently concluded 14th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship:

These teams are Hockey Haryana, Hockey Maharashtra, Hockey Jharkhand (Host), Hockey Madhya Pradesh, Hockey Bengal, Hockey Mizoram, Manipur Hockey, and Hockey Association of Odisha, as per a Hockey India press release.

Commenting on the league's significance, Bhola Nath Singh, Secretary General, Hockey India, said: "The National Women's Hockey League is a watershed moment for Indian women's domestic hockey structure. This elite competition will provide a crucial platform for our top domestic players to showcase their talent and further hone their skills. We are confident this league will not only raise the bar for domestic hockey but also serve as a springboard for identifying and nurturing future stars for the national team.

The opening day witnessed thrilling action as the Hockey Association of Odisha dominated Hockey Haryana 4-1, while Hockey Maharashtra comfortably defeated Manipur Hockey 5-1 Hockey Madhya Pradesh beat Hockey Bengal 1-0 and Hockey Jharkhand secured a 3-0 win over Hockey Mizoram.

Jharkhand Government officials, including Manoj Kumar, IAS,

Secretary, Department of Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sports & Youth Affairs, Govt of Jharkhand; Sushant Gaurav, IAS, Director Sports, Department of Sports & Youth Affairs, Govt of Jharkhand, were also in attendance. Hockey India officials, including High- Performance Director Herman Kruis, Senior Women Chief Coach Harendra Singh, and Junior Women Coach Tushar Khandker, as well as Hockey India Secretary General Bhola Nath Singh and Treasurer Sekar 3 Manoharan, were also present to witness the opening day.