Jude Menezes honoured to be in an Indian dug-out

RANCHI: The last time Jude Menezes was here, he masterminded the Japan women's hockey team's triumph over India in the Olympic qualifiers, which helped them book their spot in the Paris Games.
It was a tactical masterclass by Menezes that undid Savita & Co. as they missed the bus to Paris after making it to two successive Olympics in Rio and Tokyo.
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However, come Monday, the former India goalkeeper will be guiding Savita among many of the current India stars who are part of Soorma Hockey Club in the hope that they can win the maiden edition of the Women's Hockey India League.
It won't be easy though and Menezes, who has been coaching for more than a decade now, is well aware of it. He, however, has chalked out a few areas that he wants to work on initially which he believes will help him to get the job done.
"First, we need to get the connections going because we are playing with athletes from eight different countries," said the coach during an exclusive interview with TOI.
"We've also got four U-21 players, and we want to get their confidence levels up. Finally, we want to bring everybody on the same page because they all know how to play hockey. It's just how to get them to play collectively together."
Despite the challenges, Menezes, who earlier was also part of the New Zealand men's coaching programme, is more than pleased with the fact that he has got a chance to coach in India. He is after all the only Indian-origin coach in the Hockey India League this time, be it the men's or women's tournament.
"I think it's a huge privilege and honour for me to be coaching in India in a sport that has actually given me everything. So, I'm eternally grateful and glad I've got this opportunity," Menezes said.
Keeping his personal emotions aside, he is quite content with the team's preparations ahead of their opening encounter against Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers on Monday.
"We've spent 12 days in Chandigarh, and we had a good training block initially with the Indian players," said the former India international.
"Then, after New Year's the overseas players arrived, and we had a big team training block. After arriving in Ranchi on Tuesday we had a practice match and a couple more training sessions."
And what has particularly delighted him over this entire duration is how the Indian players have been playing besides the foreigners – some of whom are Olympic champions.
"The Indian players are gelling very well with the overseas players and it's likely because the exposure of the Indian women's team has been on the rise over the past four to eight years. I don't think they're stepping away. They're almost walking shoulder-to-shoulder with the overseas players," said Menezes.
This cohesion is something that all the coaches will be hoping for from their players and it's likely going to be the major differentiator in the competition.