India, Aug. 8 -- Training sessions for the Indian women's hockey team of late have been highlighted by a few specific drills for different sets of players.

"The strikers are working separately and practicing their finishing. The defenders are working on their communication to be more rigid in defence," said vice-captain Navneet Kaur.

On any other occasion, this may seem natural. But as the Indian team dissected and analysed the disastrous 2024-25 FIH Pro League season, which saw them get relegated after finishing last, it found that these were the two main shortcomings.

In their 16 matches, the Indians won two games, drew three and lost 11. In that run, they scored only 22 goals, made the least number of circle penetrations (210) among...