When Sjoerd Marijne bid adieu to the Indian women’s hockey team in 2021, he left as the coach who almost pulled off a miracle and an Olympic medal. His return last month was preceded by off-field issues and accompanied by doubts on the team’s future and the burden of expectations of an encore.
The Dutchman, however, is categorical that the girls are in far better shape this time around than when he first took charge in 2017. “I rank the talent I have now higher than when I arrived in 2017. And that doesn’t mean it will be easy to achieve the same results because I also see other countries becoming better,” Marijne said in his first media interaction since taking charge of the camp in Bengaluru.
Published – February 04, 2026 05:50 pm IST
