Men’s hockey team returns home after NZ series win

The team enjoyed an impressive winning campaign as they stepped up defensively on the field and took good control of the game in every match that they played against both the teams.

The Indian Men's Hockey team returns home after a 2-1 series win over the New Zealand team.

The team scored a resounding 2-0 win in first two games against New Zealand ‘A’ and secured a series win against the New Zealand national team 2-1 in a four-match series. The team enjoyed an impressive winning campaign as they stepped up defensively on the field and took good control of the game in every match that they played against both the teams.

Expressing his views on their triumph, skipper Sardar Singh said, "We are in high spirits after the historic series win against a team which is ranked higher to us and the team has shown that they are ready to take on tougher opponents. After losing the first game against New Zealand, our team did not lose its focus and managed to win the series which proves that the team has the nerves of steel. We look forward to the upcoming Hero Hockey World League Final to be held later in the year.''

Meanwhile, Director of High Performance and Chief Coach Roelant Oltmans said, "The team performed exceptionally well in the New Zealand Tour which proves that our players are ready to take on greater challenges. The highlight was that we played an attacking game throughout the tour and did not lose our possession easily which will definitely boost our preparations for the Hero Hockey World League Final scheduled to take place towards the end of this year, I hope the team do its best and display high-level performances."

The win will serve as a confidence booster for the team for their upcoming Hero Hockey World League Final, to be held in India later this year.