India Men Hockey Team arrives home post claiming the series against France and Spain at the European Tour

New Delhi, 15 August 2015: Subsequent to a successful Europe Tour in Spain and France, the India Men Hockey Team arrived with a feeling of pride at the Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi today. The team scored an emphatic 2-0 win in a two-match series against France and secured a series win against the Spanish team 2-1 in a three-match series.

The squad returned with many positives that also give them a boost of confidence for the upcoming FIH Hockey World League Final, to be held in India later this year. 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.

Speaking from the IGI Airport, Roelant Oltmans, Director, High Performance and Indian Men Team Chief Coach stated, “The team performed exceptionally well in the European Tour which proves that our players are ready to take on greater challenges. The highlight was that we did not give away the ball possession easily to the opponents and with the FIH 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.”

Speaking post landing, Captain Sardar Singh said, “We are in high spirits after the win in the European Tour and have come back with many learnings along with the weaknesses that needs to be worked upon. I think we need to work on converting scoring opportunities through penalty corners and which will be our emphasis before the FIH World League Final later in the year. The young players played exceptionally well and which is gradually adding to our strengths as we have a bigger pool of players to choose from before each tournament.”