New Delhi: The chief coach of the Indian women's hockey team, Harendra Singh, has consistently emphasized the need for improvement in the conversion rate inside the striking circle since he joined the team a year ago.

The best drag-flickers, who had been absent from the Indian setup, are necessary for a team to get to the top, even if the forwards try their hardest to score field goals. Although Gurjit Kaur previously handled the task for India, notably in the lead-up to and during the Tokyo Olympics, India's goal-scoring percentage during penalty corners (PC) has decreased significantly recently.

Since joining the team last summer, Harendra's primary goal has been to develop a group of drag-flickers who can turn the tide in the most critical moments of games and competitions. The 55-year-old initially brought in former Indian drag-flicker and Olympic bronze medalist Rupinder Pal Singh to polish the talents of the five or six PC experts he selected.

To transform the drag-flickers into a powerful squad, Harendra then recruited Taeke Taekema, a Dutch drag-flick superstar.

“Taeke is always with us. He always arrives for two weeks when our camp begins, and he will also be with us in London, according to Harendra.

"We don't have a full-time drag-flick coach since the risk of injury actually rises when you are constantly drag-flicking. As a result, you don't need it every day. In the alternative, the glute and groin are severely injured.

Under the direction of Dutch penalty corner specialist Toon Siepman, Harendra had dispatched Deepika Sehrawat and Manisha Chauhan for a ten-day camp in Amsterdam in an effort to increase the Indian drag-flickers' proficiency. The drag-flick instructor is also the coach of Yibbi Jansen of the Netherlands, who won the 2024 FIH Player of the Year award and an Olympic gold medal and led all scorers at the Paris Games last year with nine goals.

“Ten days before the remainder of the squad, Deepika and Manisha traveled to Amsterdam to train with Siepman, who is widely considered to be one of the top drag-flick coaches in the world. "We met them in the Netherlands," stated Harendra.

In preparation for their inaugural four games against Australia and Argentina in the European leg of the Pro League, the squad will train in the Dutch city until June 8 before traveling to London. India will first play Australia on June 14 and 15, then Argentina on June 17 and 18.

The squad will then go to Antwerp for their upcoming two games against Belgium on June 21 and 22, before finishing the tour with two contests against China on June 28 and 29 in Berlin.

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