'Upbeat and confident', says Gurjit Kaur ahead of Olympic Test Event

Indian women's hockey team player Gurjit Kaur said that they are upbeat and confident for the upcoming Olympic Test Event, slated to commence on August 17.

"Since we are backed by good preparations- thanks to the Special Camps held for defenders and goalkeepers, the team environment before the Olympic Test Event is great and we are upbeat and confident. In the past few weeks, we have worked on quite a few aspects of our game so we can do well against teams like Australia, China and Japan," Kaur said in a statement.

In the Olympic Test Event, India will compete against Australia, China, and Japan.

India will be entering the competition with a lot of confidence as they have delivered a scintillating performance in the FIH Women's Series Finals in Hiroshima in June. Kaur was brilliant during India's triumph in the competition as she was the highest goal scorer of the tournament.

Interestingly, Kaur is the only drag-flicker in the team and said exposure helped her grow in the team and improve her skills.

"Dragflicking is a responsibility for me like everyone else has their own responsibilities. Some players have to attack for a goal, some players have to defend, that way, my responsibility is to ensure we score through PCs, which I work on. The exposure I have got over the past two years has only helped me grow in the team and improve my skills as a drag-flicker," she said.

"I practised and learnt dragflicking well after joining the Indian team then I got my chances and thereafter my confidence increased," Kaur added.

Kaur is aiming to beat Australia as she feels beating them will put them in good stead ahead of the Olympic Qualifiers, scheduled to take place in October/November.

"It will be a big confidence boost for us if we do well against Australia. In the past six months, we have done very well against teams like Japan, China, Spain and Ireland but a win against Australia will put us in good stead ahead of the Olympic Qualifiers," she said.

( With inputs from ANI )