The second edition of the Hero Hockey India League starts today

Runners up of 1^st edition Delhi Waveriders to clash against Jaypee Warriors on the opening day

“Let the best team win” says Delhi Waveriders Coach

“We aim to make a winning start”, declares Barry Dancer, Coach Jaypee Punjab Warriors

New Delhi, 25 January 2014: Today is a big day for hockey and a busy day for hockey lovers as the nation is set to witness the start of the second edition of Hero Hockey India League in Mohali. The League will start with Jaypee Warriors against the Delhi Wave Riders. It will be interesting to see whether Jaypee warriors can keep their cool in front of their home crowd and if Delhi Waveriders will be able to beat the host team on their home turf.

This year with the addition of the 6^th team – Kalinga Lancers it will be interesting to see which team emerges the winner of the second edition of HHIL. With 72 Olympians and participants of 11 countries participating, the League is surely a tough game to win.

Keeping last year’s performance in mind many hockey lovers will be keeping a close tab on Delhi Waveriders who were the runner-up of the 1^st edition of Hero Hockey India League. Last year the Delhi team played 4 matches against Jaypee and won all of them. It will be interesting to see whether this year they will be able to keep their winning streak against them. For Jaypee Warriors it will be payback time and if they win against Delhi tomorrow it will not only boost their confidence but they will start the League on a high.

Last year Delhi Waveriders were the favourites for the League when they qualified for the finals. In the entire League the team played 14 matches and win 10. This year under the guidance of the new coach Cedric D’Souza the team is confident on their performance and is looking forward to their first match against Jaypee Warriors.

While last year Jaypee Warriors were not able to live up to the expectations of their fans and could only win 4 out of the 10 matches, this year they are looking forward to playing good hockey. With last year’s highest goal scorer Sandeep Singh playing for Jaypee Warriors this year, all eyes will be on him and his goal scoring skills.

With both teams playing with their full strength it is yet to be seen which team keeps its nerves and emerges the winner of the first match on the opening day of the second edition of Hero Hockey India League. While in the sports world everyone knows anyone can win a match on any given day, Jaypee Warriors will play to win its pride and Delhi Waveriders will play for its pride.

A confident Sardar Singh, Captain of Delhi Waveriders addressed the conference stating, “Our single point strategy is to play like a team. We have world’s best players who will contribute to the team’s efforts. There are lot of changes in the team this year but the objective is to not to allow opponent to come in our striking circle. Each team has its strength and weakness. We will curtail our weaknesses and play on our strengths.”

Cedric D’Souza, Coach of Delhi Waveriders said, “There are lot of changes in the team this year but all the players are in good form. It is difficult to say which is a stronger team as we cannot take anyone lightly. Even a single loss can change the shape of the game. We cannot afford to lose any game. Punjab is a robust team too but we are good too. Let the best team win.”

Upbeat on team’s preparation for the Tournament, Barry Dancer, Coach of Jaypee Punjab Warriors said, “The first match is very important for us and we will put all efforts to win it. We lost to Delhi last year and maiden win will boost our confidence tremendously. Delhi Waveriders is in good form with very strong counter attack. Our attack will decide the game. The team has tremendous potential and has been practicing for long. Converting penalty corners will be important for us.”

“We aim to make a winning start. The team has practiced hard and is ready to take on any team. Sardar is a world class player but we have our strategy in place. We have great goal keeper and wonderful forwards who are ready to offer some of the best hockey to Mohali spectators,” S V Sunil said.

Each team consists of 14 Indian and 10 foreign players and each player will be vying for his chance to be the ‘Gaurav’ for their team this year.

The League starts today at Mohali with a perfect opening ceremony at 7 pm wherein Nargis Fakri will be seen performing alongwith many more exciting performances by international artists. The match will begin at 8pm. With Star Sports as the official broadcasters for the League, Hockey fans can catch the excitement LIVE on the channel.