Hockey India tosday announced a 22-member Indian Women Team for the upcoming tour of South Africa, set to begin in Cape Town on 16 January 2023. On the tour, India will play four Test matches against South Africa, and three against World Rank 1 Netherlands between 16 to 28 January 2023. All seven matches will take place in Cape Town.

However, the selection of the team raised eyebrows in Odisha as no player from the State, which is dubbed as Home of Hockey, could get a berth in the squad. This is for the first time in decades that the Indian women hockey team has not featured any player from Odisha.

Deep Grace Ekka was the last Odisha player to represent India in an international match. She was the vice-captain and only Odisha player in the Indian team that emerged champions in the 1st Womens Nations Cup Hockey Tournament in Valencia, Spain on 17 December 2022.

With Odisha all set to play host to the Mens Hockey World Cup for the second successive time from 13 January 2023 and the Odisha Government being the sponsors of the National Hockey Teams, the non-inclusion of any player from Odisha in the National women team has stunned the hockey followers of the State.

The issue has assumed added significance with Odisha hockey legend Dilip Tirkey now functioning as the president of Hockey India. People of Odisha wonder whether the selection of the Indian women team was impartial? They also fail to understand how come the standard of Odisha players declined so much that none among them could deserve a place in the Indian team?

Coming back to the tour of South Africa, goalkeeper Savita Punia has been named the captain of the Indian squad with experienced campaigner Navneet Kaur as her deputy. While veteran forward Rani will be making a return to the squad since FIH Womens Hockey Pro League 2021-22 match against Belgium, Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke, who led the Indian Women Junior Team at the Uniphar U-23 5-Nations Tournament 2022 in May, has received her maiden call for the Senior team.

INDIAN WOMEN TEAM: Goalkeepers: Savita Punia (Captain), Bichu Devi Kharibam. Defenders: Nikki Pradhan, Udita, Ishika Chaudhary, Gurjit Kaur. Midfielders: Vaishnavi Vitthal Phalke, P Sushila Chanu, Nisha, Salima Tete, Monika, Neha, Sonika, Baljeet Kaur. Forwards: Lalremsiami, Navneet Kaur (Vice-Captain), Vandana Katariya, Sangita Kumari, Beauty Dungdung, Rani, Reena Khokhar, Sharmila Devi.