Spain women's hockey team reaches Bhubaneswar for the FIH Pro League matches

Bhubaneswar, Feb 22 (IANS) The Spain women's hockey team on Tuesday reached Bhubaneswar, Odisha, for the weekend's doubleheader against hosts India in the FIH Hockey Pro League 2021/22.

The two teams will clash on February 26 and 27 at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium.

On being asked about the prospects of facing India, the Spanish head coach Adrian Lock said, "We are very excited to come to India for the first time and play against India at the Kalinga Stadium. We don't often get to play at the big stadiums. So, we are very much looking forward to it. It's a new experience for us. Both teams are in the FIH Pro League for the first time. So, yes, very much looking forward to the game."

Spain lost their opening match in the tournament against The Netherlands but managed to push their second game against the Dutch to a shoot-out. Spain captain Maria Lopez said that earning a point against The Netherlands has given their team confidence ahead of away games against India.

"We were really happy with the level of skills we showed against The Netherlands. They are definitely the best team in the world. We earned a point against them. So, we obviously come here very confident," Spain captain Maria Lopez said.

"But we know India are a really strong team. They have already played two games in the FIH Hockey Pro League and won both their games. So we know we have to fight for it," she added.

The Spain skipper also expressed confidence about the team's preparedness for the upcoming challenge and expressed hopes of giving a strong competition to India.

"We feel we are ready to go. We have a lot of new members in our team, who have been performing well. It has been a really exciting time. We got a good start in Spain, we had our first two games there. So, we hope we can continue in the same vein of form here in India," Maria Lopez said.

The double-header between India and Spain will be played on Saturday and Sunday.