Hockey legend and former Indian Women’s Team captain Rani Rampal hits back at the selectors for overlooking her

Former Indian Women’s Team captain and hockey legend Rani Rampal has expressed her discontent with selectors or decision-makers for omitting her from the Asian Games, despite her excellent form. Rani, who led the team to a historic fourth-place finish at the Tokyo Games, returned from a hamstring injury, only to find herself excluded from the provisional squad for the Asian Games 2023.

In an exclusive interview with PTI, Rani stated that, at this stage of her career, she doesn’t need to prove herself to anyone. Her impressive performance at the National Games, where she scored 18 goals, should have been sufficient. She suggested that her omission might stem from insecurity about her presence within the team.

“I am in that stage of life where I don’t have to prove anything. I have achieved almost everything in life through hockey, but still, I felt the National Games was a chance for me to make a comeback,” Rani shared with PTI.

“I had performance, fitness, everything, but somewhere, someone was not secured with me, be it players or coaches. There might be some jealousy. But I believe in doing my work,” she added.

Commenting on the Indian Women’s squad for the upcoming Asian Games in China, Rani highlighted that several players are unfit, although she refrained from naming any individuals. She stated that if the coach and management are comfortable with this, she respects their decision.

Rani, who led India to success at the Summer Games 2022, described life post-Olympics as challenging, marked by pain and difficulties that taught her valuable lessons about people and life.

“The journey after the Olympics was really difficult for me. I think it was the toughest time of my career. I have seen a lot of pain and difficulties. I have also learned a lot off the field about people, about life.”

Her determination to regain fitness and return to the national team motivated her during this tough period. Although she worked tirelessly to regain her fitness, she expressed disappointment that she hasn’t been given a chance in the national team over the last two years.