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Star Indian forward Navneet Kaur, coming off an impressive showing at the FIH World Cup Qualifiers, spoke about winning the Player of the Tournament award and credited her teammates for their trust and support. Navneet also won the Hockey India Balbir Singh Sr. Award for Player of the Year (Women) at the 8th Hockey India Annual Awards on Friday.
Navneet Kaur netted a hat-trick for India against Wales in their third match of the recent FIH Women's World Cup Qualifiers in Hyderabad, guiding the hosts to a 4-1 victory. The win secured India a spot in the semifinals and confirmed their qualification for the Women's Hockey World Cup. Her hat-trick stood out as one of the tournament's key moments, with India also registering a win over Italy. However, they fell short in the final, losing 2-0 to England. Navneet emerged as the third-highest goal-scorer in the tournament and won the Player of the Tournament award. Speaking to ANI on the accomplishment, she said the award made her happy but credited her team's support and trust for the achievement. "As a player, an award like the Player of the Tournament always makes you feel happy. However, it would not have been possible without the support of the entire team. It was a complete team effort. I would like to credit the team for placing their trust in me," she said. Speaking about her hat-trick against Wales, Navneet Kaur said she believes in herself and always looks to play with confidence and that she aims to score whenever possible, focusing on giving her best regardless of the number of goals she scores. "I always believe in myself. I always play with confidence. I had it in my mind to score whenever I could. However, it's not like I am only confident when I score the goals, and I am always looking to give my best," she said. Ahead of the FIH World Cup in August and the Asian Games in September, Navneet Kaur said that although India performed well in the Qualifiers, the team still has areas to improve and is focused on addressing them ahead of the two big events this year. "While we performed well in the tournament, there are still a few areas we can improve in. And we are looking to improve on those aspects ahead of the FIH World Cup and the Asian Games," Navneet Kaur said. Coming to the 8th Hockey India Annual Awards, Navneet Kaur and Hardik Singh were honoured with the coveted Hockey India Balbir Singh Sr. Award for Player of the Year 2025 (INR 20 lakh each) in the men's and women's categories, respectively. (ANI)
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