New Delhi: Chief coach Sjoerd Marijne says the Indian women’s hockey team has put its historic fifth-place finish at the FIH World Cup 2026 behind it, with four days left before the side begins its Asian Games campaign in Japan.
India finished fifth at the World Cup, their best result in 52 years, and arrive in Japan with an Asian Games gold medal within reach – it would be only the second in the history of Indian women’s hockey, after 1982.
Adjusting to Japan after a break in Bengaluru
The squad had a period of active rest in Bengaluru after the World Cup before flying out to Japan, and training has since picked up in intensity as the tournament nears.
“After landing in Japan, it is about adjustments to the difference in time and creating more intensity in the training sessions as we get near to the tournament,” Marijne said. “We’re in a really beautiful environment. Everybody is now focused on the Asian Games.”
Much of the physical planning is overseen by Dr Wayne Lombard, who tracks how players are recovering and resting before deciding how hard Marijne’s sessions can push them.
“Wayne is responsible for building the programme on the physical side,” Marijne said. “People always think it’s about training more and more, but a really important factor is the rest, and what way you’re doing the rest, and also the strength sessions. He monitors the players – how they feel, how well they sleep, do they feel fresh. Wayne tells me more or less what I can do in my sessions – not which exercise, but how high the intensity can be.”
A dinner, a highlights video and a closed chapter
Before the squad left the SAI Centre in Bengaluru for Japan, Marijne asked the centre’s chef to prepare a Japanese-themed dinner for the players. That evening, he told the group it was time to move on from the World Cup.
“We did something remarkable and historical, but we have to move on to the next tournament,” Marijne said he told the players. “Later in your life, you will recall this World Cup, like it was amazing what we achieved. This is also a moment to stand still and move on from what just happened, instead of going on and on about it. You have to close a chapter before you move to the next one.”
Marijne asked each player to share her most beautiful memory of the World Cup, and the team’s video analyst put together a video of the tournament’s goals and highlights, ending on a slide that read “Road to Asian Games”.
“That way, it is behind us,” Marijne said. “We took a moment to relive what we can be proud of, and I also told the players success is not guaranteed. You have to fight for it again and give even more.”
World Cup debutants have grown, says coach
India have named the same squad for the Asian Games as they did for the World Cup, where 11 players made their debut at the tournament. Marijne said those players had benefited from the experience.
“They have experienced all different kinds of playing cultures and playing styles, and that’s what we can use and build for the future,” he said. “The focus is on the team itself and how we want to improve after the World Cup. I want more and more, because if we stand still and think we are there, that’s the first stage when you stop improving.”
Team comes before Savita’s milestone
Goalkeeper Savita is set to become India’s most-capped woman hockey player when she plays her second match of the Asian Games, but Marijne said the milestone would not distract the squad.
“Savita is very professional, so I’m not worried about this at all,” he said. “If there’s one player who’s focused on the team, it’s Savita, and I think the other players just want to run harder for her. We’re really focused as a team, not on individual milestones. We celebrate as a team.”
India’s defence was one of the team’s strengths at the World Cup, where they held higher-ranked opponents to draws and beat Germany 3-1. Marijne said that record had given the squad confidence, but not certainty.
“These matches gave us the confidence that the way we are doing things – the way we are defending, the way we are creating – it works for us,” he said. “But it doesn’t mean it will constantly work if we don’t continue to put in the effort. The basics need to be good – the running, the intensity, all these small things.”
No talk of rivals, says India’s ‘Chak De’ coach
China are considered India’s main challengers at the Asian Games, but Marijne said he rarely mentions opponents by name in team talks.
“I hardly use the word China or Japan or Korea or any other country during our team talks,” he said. “What other countries are doing doesn’t have my interest. We need to do our things really well, and then the outcome can be good.”
Marijne has been called India’s “Chak De” coach, after the Bollywood film about the women’s hockey team, and said the connection he has built in India means a great deal to him.
“For me, the most important thing is the connection with the players, with my staff, with Hockey India and with SAI,” he said. “I feel very appreciated here in India, and yes, it is of course great to hear the stories from ‘Chak De India’. The girls also speak about it sometimes. It’s quite funny.”
