By Sinjini Mitra
A major change took place in the Indian hockey team, news about an unexpected resignation of head coach Harendra Singh of the women’s team has surfaced on Monday, 1st December 2025, along with the series of serious complaints lodged by the other players about his “outdated and dictatorial” coaching methods which were being practiced.
Harendra Singh, who took charge of the team in April 2024, has finally stepped down on 1st December 2025 sending shockwaves through the hockey fraternity, but PTI sources have revealed that discontentment has been shimmering within the team for months, with players reporting about “mental harassment” to Hockey India, SAI TOPS officials, and even the sports ministry last week.
According to the officials, the sports ministry took an immediate action against the matter and directed hockey India to take swift and immediate action regarding it. For a very long time the players have been reportedly raising concerns over Harendra’s authoritarian attitude, about his rigid coaching style and the team’s steady decline of performance under his coaching. Four months ago, SAI TOPS officials were conducting an inspection in Bengaluru and they had also submitted a similar negative report about the team environment and coaching standards. After recognizing the seriousness of the issue, a confidential internal inquiry was conducted within four days. Hockey India’s President Dilip Tirkey and Secretary General Bholanath Singh travelled directly from the ongoing Junior Hockey World Cup to Bengaluru, where they individually spoke to all the players attending the national camp at the moment.
According to the sources majority of the players have demanded the replacement of the entire coaching staff members. Many have reportedly rated Harendra’s performance lower than all the former coaches like Sjoerd Marijne and Janneke Schopman, claiming that his presence was not contributing to the team’s improvement, when contacted to a senior player clarified the fact that all their complaints were not about hockey but they also had issues with his poor attitude and outdated coaching methods which were not at all contributing to the team’s improvement.
The players have noticed the alarming drops in their performance, the fitness levels, and training quality. The players started questioning how they can win if the quality of their training is so outdated and poor, and following Harendra’s exit, the women’s national camp in Bengaluru has been dissolved, and players have been asked to return home until any further notice. Meanwhile, speculation is growing that Dutch coach Sjoerd Marijne, who has famously guided the women’s team to a historic fourth-place finish at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics might get considered for a return.
Team members have described a tense atmosphere within the squad, saying it has begun affecting their performances on the field. Addressing rumours that senior players engineered Harendra’s exit or used him as a scapegoat for the team’s recent poor form, another player countered that People can say what they want, but only they know what was happening within the team. The team was absolutely exhausted by the coach’s attitude and his coaching style.
With Harendra’s resignation accepted and the team temporarily disbanded, Hockey India is expected to announce the next course of action soon. The focus has now shifted to rebuilding trust, improving training standards, and preparing the squad for crucial upcoming international games and opportunities.