The Women’s Hockey India League (HIL-W) would be hopeful that the bumpy ride from the garage to the start line fades into a distant memory before lights-out at the Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Munda Astro Turf Stadium in Ranchi on January 12.
A reduced number of teams, a lack of adequate cash, and the ever-dwindling count of foreign players may have dealt quite the damage, but Hockey India has not only stayed brave in its wake but also remained committed to the task at hand.
This is the first time an exclusive league for women has found a place in the HIL framework. And frankly, it’s been a long time coming. When the high of an unprecedented fourth-place finish at Tokyo 2020 melted into the harrowing lows of non-selection for the Paris Olympics, the sense of disappointment was palpable. It was evident that although India had a truckload of talent, someone or something needed to switch gears and steer the vehicle in the right direction.
And maybe the introduction of HIL-W answers that call by providing a crucial platform for female athletes. What it has surely done already is it has paved the way for a more inclusive future of Indian hockey, with the league running simultaneously alongside the reinstituted men’s tournament in Rourkela.
“A few years after I started playing hockey, the men’s HIL started. And that brought about a revolution in the men’s game. We saw first-hand how the style of play and mentality of the boys changed post its introduction. Added to that, a lot of players got the chance to showcase their skills. I am expecting the same to happen to us now that we have got a stage to perform on. We will be learning a lot since it is the first time that a league of this scale is being organised,” says Ishika Chaudhary, Odisha Warriors (ODWA) defender and the first player to have been sold at the women’s auction for Rs 16 lakh.
The ‘scale’ Ishika mentions could have been grander had the plans of including two more teams not been deferred until the next season. After the closure of certain legal proceedings, it was announced that the Hyderabad Toofans and a franchise of the BC Jindal Group, Mumbai, will be invited to the party only in 2025–26.
While the official statement may have been the harbinger of good news for the competitive nature of what is now a four-team league, it might make life difficult for the new franchises, who would have to string together a squad from a depleted pool.
Presently, 96 players have been slotted into the Delhi SG Pipers (DSGP), JSW Soorma Hockey Club (JSHC), Shrachi Rahr Bengal Tigers (SRBT) and the Warriors. These four franchises will compete in a round-robin format, playing each other twice in the pool stage that continues until January 24. The top two teams on the leaderboard will then clash in the finale on January 26.
The inclusion of foreign players adds to the star value of HIL-W, but the competition has witnessed a slew of pull-outs ahead of the upcoming iteration. As many as eight foreign players have backed out, including the Dutch duo of Olympic, World and European champion Xan Gerdien de Waard and triple Olympic champion Eva Drummond, Great Britain’s Commonwealth Games 2022 gold medallist Anna Toman and her compatriot and double Olympic medallist Giselle Anne Ansley, among others.
The reasons cited for the mass exodus range from financial shortcomings and injury rehabilitation breaks to not wanting to be away from family during the holiday season and other contractual nitty-gritty. Sportstar has learned that a few players had been insisting on signing a three-year agreement with the teams, but in vain.
Four of the eight withdrawals were from the SRBT outfit. India defender Udita, whose services were acquired by the Tigers for a record Rs 32 lakh, said, “Many international players have decided not to play after the auction. It would be wonderful if the foreigners could join us in full strength ahead of the next edition. They can help us develop our game better. I am sure things will change with the two new teams coming in next season,” she said.
Having not lost any of its foreign players (yet), Odisha seemingly has the strongest squad on paper. But a lot of its momentum would hinge on the formidable Yibbi Jansen, the highest goalscorer and gold medallist at Paris 2024. The presence of Janneke Schopman in the backroom rounds the squad up. There won’t be many who would be more acquainted with the nub of Indian hockey than the Dutch boss. She even managed to pick up the core of the junior Indian team she had guided to a first-ever Asia Cup in 2023.
“There’s a good mix of experience and youth, and that is why we happen to be the favourite. But we have to understand now there is pressure to perform, and we have to live up to the expectations. Seniors like Grace di (Deep Grace Ekka) are returning, although she has retired from the international circuit (January 2024), and that makes me excited for the days ahead,” Ishika said.
Incidentally, there were a number of prominent faces who did not get even as much as a sniff from the auction table. This saw the Hockey India League Governing Committee jump into action mid-auction to reduce the base price of unsold athletes of the Indian senior and junior women’s teams to Rs 2 lakh. The decision, Hockey India said, had come in response to a collective appeal from the players.
Among the players who were eventually roped in, there was a consensus regarding the salary not being enough. “Yes, the money and budget are not that great as of now, but I am sure this league is going to touch new highs pretty soon,” Pipers’ Sangita Kumari had said despite being among the top five of the most expensive bids placed at the auction. She had been snapped up for Rs 22 lakh.
HIL did miss a fair deal by not onboarding a private broadcast partner ahead of the auction, but eventually, the multilingual telecast rights were sold to the Sony Sports Network on December 13. In its efforts to popularise the sport across the country, Hockey India has also decided to forego the revenue it would have generated from ticket sales by making entry across the men’s and women’s competitions free for all.
Whether the move indeed tempts Ranchi denizens to fill the 5,000 seats at the arena remains to be seen.
