Former India hockey captain Rani Rampal announces retirement

She has besides helped the squad triumph a Junior World Cup medal, Asian Cup, and was 1 of the cardinal reasons wherefore India could suffice for the back-to-back Olympics for the archetypal time.

An epoch of excellence comes to an end! 🇮🇳🏑

Today, we bid farewell to the 1 and lone Rani Rampal, an icon who has defined Indian hockey for implicit a decade. From starring India to countless victories to being an inspiration for aspiring athletes crossed the country, Rani’s legacy… pic.twitter.com/TRer76L8Li

— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) October 24, 2024

She made her planetary debut successful 2008 and has scored 205 goals for India successful 254 appearances. She was besides honoured the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award successful 2020 and was besides a recipient of the Padma Shri, the country’s 4th highest civilian award, successful the aforesaid year.

“An epoch of excellence comes to an end! Today, we bid farewell to the 1 and lone Rani Rampal, an icon who has defined Indian hockey for implicit a decade. From starring India to countless victories to being an inspiration for aspiring athletes crossed the country, Rani’s bequest volition everlastingly shine. Thank you, Rani, for your unmatched dedication, leadership, and passion. You’ve paved the mode for the adjacent generation, and your interaction connected Indian hockey volition beryllium felt for years to come,” Hockey India posted connected X.

Since aboriginal 2023, however, she hasn’t played for the state aft she was sidelined by the past manager Janneke Schopman backmost successful 2022. The manager has said that the determination was taken for the squad arsenic a full portion Rani had expressed her disappointment for not being fixed a wide crushed for her exclusion.

“Whatever happened with maine successful the past 2 years wasn’t right. I came backmost from an injury, was the apical scorer astatine the National Games but wasn’t picked. The champion idiosyncratic who tin reply this is the Chief Coach oregon the selectors due to the fact that I don’t cognize the answer,” the subordinate had said.

Rani was besides precocious roped successful arsenic the nationalist manager for sub-junior women players.