CHENNAI: Former Indian women’s hockey team captain Rani Rampal said she is “not retiring”, even as she was named the head coach of the sub-junior (under-17) girls’ team on Thursday.
“Whatever happened to me in the last two years was not right. I came back from an injury and was the top scorer at the National Games, but was not picked. The best person who can answer this is the chief coach or the selectors, because I do not know the answer,” Rani said in the presence of Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey and secretary Bhola Nath Singh at a press conference.
Rani has not found a place in the Indian team ever since she returned from injury post the Tokyo Olympics, and it is hard to tell whether she will earn a spot in the Asian Games squad under coach Janneke Schopman.
“I am not retiring since I know I still have more to give to the sport as a player. I have this thing in me to not give up. If I had to, I would have given up after the Olympics,” Rani added.
Tirkey said the decision to omit Rani was beyond his control. “When a team is selected, the president and secretary don’t interfere. It’s the responsibility of the selectors and coach. I spoke to Rani, who was very upset. We cannot share all the details but after talking to her, we offered her to become a coach,” the former India stalwart added.
Rani and former India captain Sardar Singh will helm the sub-junior girls and boys teams, respectively. The players will undergo a 45-50 day camp, which will commence from August 21 at the Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela. It will be followed by international matches in Belgium and the Netherlands
