~The gifted midfielder will make her maiden look on the Hangzhou Asian Video games, beginning twenty third September 2023 ~
Bengaluru, eleventh September 2023: A fortnight in the past, when Sonika’s mom boarded a flight from Delhi to reach in Bengaluru to attend Sunehra Safar – a particular send-off ceremony hosted by Hockey India little did the 26-year-old participant know that she would obtain her India jersey by her mom forward of the all-important Hangzhou Asian Video games, which is scheduled to be held from twenty third September 2023 to eighth October 2023.
“It was really a particular second, particularly to obtain the jersey in entrance of an enormous viewers which included all my teammates. These couple of minutes on the stage introduced again all of the reminiscences of my battle and dealing with challenges to get right here and my mom has been equally a part of this journey – all the time supporting me at each essential juncture,” acknowledged an emotional Sonika.
The midfielder from Hisar, Haryana made her senior group debut on the Hawke’s Bay Cup in New Zealand again in 2016. She was a part of the group that gained the Gold medal on the Girls’s Asia Cup in 2017 and featured within the Prepared Regular Tokyo occasion in 2019.
However the next yr put a pause in her budding profession. In 2020, she needed to depart the Nationwide Camp to hunt skilled assist to enhance her psychological wellbeing. “Covid lockdown was not sort to me. It was a troublesome part personally and I’m so glad that my battle to remain robust mentally by this part was acknowledged very early on by the group administration and I used to be supplied with skilled assist. Wanting again, I’m very grateful to Hockey India and my teammates for permitting me this break,” acknowledged Sonika on reflection.
Having made a comeback within the nationwide group in 2021/ 22 on the FIH Hockey Professional League after a powerful efficiency in that yr’s Nationwide Championships, Sonika has solely risen in her profession. She has been a daily characteristic within the group, having performed an element within the historic Bronze medal win on the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Video games in addition to the title win on the FIH Nations Cup 2022.
“I’m extraordinarily excited and wanting to play my first ever Asian Video games. I’ve put in numerous arduous work to succeed in this stage in my profession and having picked up good ends in main occasions like CWG, the group could be very assured of present. After Hockey India’s Sunehra Safar occasion, the group is all of the extra motivated and impressed to carry laurels to the nation, in addition to our households. Our focus is solely on profitable the Gold and doing effectively within the Paris Olympics 2024,” Sonika signed off.
India is grouped in Pool A with Korea, Malaysia, Hong Kong China and Singapore. They may start their marketing campaign on twenty seventh September towards Singapore.
