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Indian Women hockey players don their new jersey as they pose for a group photo during a practice session ahead of the FIH Women's Series finals, at Sports Authority of India (SAI) in Bengaluru, Saturday, June 1, 2019. (PTI)[/caption]
Bhubaneswar, June 1 (IANS): Hockey fans can watch the Manpreet Singh-led Indian men's team donning the new uniform in the forthcoming FIH Men's Series Finals in Bhubaneswar starting June 6 June while the Indian women's team led by striker Rani will be seen wearing the new official kit at the FIH Women's Series Finals in Hiroshima, Japan, starting June 15.
The brand new uniform created by Shiv Naresh, is a darker shade of blue which sports the Indian tri-colour on the sleeves and on the shoulders. As the game of hockey has evolved over the years making it fast-paced and technical, the role of the official playing kits too have evolved with manufacturers having to keep in mind the breath-ability as it increases the chances of dehydration on field. In addition, the material used should not curb their movements on the field while playing high-intensity hockey.
"We feel a lot of pride in wearing the India jersey and several young players work hard round the year to find an opportunity to wear the India kit which also features their unique Hockey India playing number and only a few are fortunate enough to have this privilege.
"The official playing kit always holds a very special place in every player's heart and we are thrilled to receive this new-look, newly designed Indian uniform ahead of our important campaign at the FIH Men's Series Finals," expressed Manpreet.
Indian women's team skipper too reflected on her team's excitement saying, "We absolutely love the new uniform. We also received new training kit and we are excited about it. The colours are bold, vibrant and I think in a way reflects the aggression we want to showcase in our game. The material used is dry-fit making it very light and breathable when we play matches."