Hockey India League : 'Return Of HIL Will Bring More Medals For India'- UP Rudras Star Lalit Upadhyay Hails Revival

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The Hockey India League (HIL) made a grand return on 28th December as India's premier hockey franchise tournament after a 7-year hiatus. Just like the good old days, it promises all the thrills and spills and the best of hockey action, one can ask for.

Indian hockey star, Lalit Upadhyay is someone, who is no stranger to resilience, excellence and inspiring stories. Lalit, one of India's most prolific players will be plying his trade in the 2024-25 season with UP Rudras under the captaincy of Hardik Singh.

myKhel caught up with the 31-year-old in an exclusive interaction organised by Sony Sports, where he shared his thoughts on the league's revival, UP Rudras, his journey through adversity and also his plans for the future. Here are the excerpts from the interview.

The Hockey India League (HIL) is returning after seven years. Last time, it had a huge impact on the Indian players. What impact do you think it will have once again on Indian hockey?

HIL is a monumental platform for both Indian and foreign players. It provides a huge international stage where players can showcase their skills, learn from senior national team players, and compete with some of the best talents worldwide. It opens doors for young players to join the U-19 national team and eventually the senior Indian team. I would like to thank Hockey India and Government of Odisha for bringing back the league. Additionally, the financial boost HIL offers is significant. Back in 2017, it helped identify many talents who later contributed to India's success at the Asian Games, Commonwealth Games, and the Olympics. With its return, I believe we'll see more medals and greater international recognition.

What are your thoughts on the overseas players in your UP Rudras team, including few Paris Olympic gold medalists like Lars Balk and Floris Wolterboer?

While in the national team, we always keep a close watch at the overseas players. We play them quite frequently at the international stage and we know the strengths and weaknesses in advance. We have roped in a number of good foreign players in the side for sure. I would like to thank the UP Rudras franchise for giving us the opportunity and choosing the state of Uttar Pradesh for the league. Well, each one of the players have their own respective traits and it is up to the coaches of how they will utilise it on the field and put things in place. We are playing a lot of practice matches now and I can say one thing that we have gelled up quite well and learning a lot of things from each other. We have built a good atmosphere in the team, where the juniors as well as the seniors get along really well.

How it is like to work under former India coach Paul van Ass at UP Rudras? What is his philosophy?

Yeah, he has managed the Indian team before. He is a very well renowned coach, someone who has led the Netherlands team to an Olympic medal. He is a legend in himself. When it comes to his philosophy, he gives us the freedom, a player wants. There is no such hierarchy in a senior or a junior player. We have been advised not to be afraid of taking any decisions on the field. Unless we don't put into practice, we won't be able to know whether we have done it right or wrong. We are getting used to some certain strategies which we will use it in due course. At the same time, he also has a very good sense of humour but when it comes to his work, he is very professional.

As a senior player, what advice would you give to the young players in your team?

Not just the youngsters in my team, my advice would be same for all the young players in the league - This is your moment, be free, learn a lot and while getting a hang of things, one should always remember not to lose their respective originalities. This is the only trait that has brought each one of them to this level. So always be yourself. You should enjoy it thoroughly and they should feel lucky that they are getting such a big platform to showcase their abilities to the world. So show them who you all are!

How does it feel to team up with national teammates - Akashdeep, Simranjeet, and Hardik Singh at UP Rudras?

Yeah of course, we have been playing together for 8-10 years now. I have spent more time with them then I do at home with my own family. So, we do have a good understanding on and off the field and our focus obviously would be to translate it during the course of the tournament. In leagues like this, you don't get many chances to play together in the same team and when the opportunity comes, we will definitely use our experience and will try to contribute to the team's success as much as possible.

Your first match is against Kalinga Lancers, a team you previously played for. How are you preparing for it?

It's not like that a lot of things are going around inside our head. We do have our own structure, which we will follow and will stick to the game-plan as implemented by our coach. No matter the result, we will put things into practice as per strategy. See, the result is not in our hands, what we can control is our own performance. We will walk into the field with same mindset throughout the tournament and will try to get things done right.

As far as Kalinga is concerned, I have a lot of good memories with the team. I played their for 4 years and in the last HIL season back in 2017, we ended up as champions as well. But as it is said, time changes, team changes and you have to get used to the transition and adjust and keep on doing your job. I am happy that I will be representing my home state, Uttar Pradesh. I am devotee of Lord Shiva- Rudra Bholenath. I hail from Varanasi and quite naturally would take Mahadev's blessings with me whenever I take the field to play.

There was a time, when you were going through the most difficult phase of your career. You were falsely accused of bribery. But despite of that you overcame all odds and now you are a 2-time Olympic bronze medallist. How do you look back at this journey?

Well, it is very hard to sum up that period in a minute to be honest. Can't say it as a journey if I explain it under sixty seconds. The hardships, a player goes through cannot be explained in words. My request would be, if a player, who has been framed, just like I was - one should dive deep into the facts and if that person is innocent, please do come forward to help. It should not be like this that for 3-4 years, the player keeps on fighting with all the hate without any reason. If he or she is a young player, it is quite natural that they might take a wrong step, something which is expected due to immaturity. I was going through a lot at that time and my mother advised me not to give up the sport. If I had left hockey at that time, then people would've passed the verdict that I actually took a bribe. I didn't give up and fought till the very end to prove my innocence.

Well the HIL is already underway and a number of international tournaments are also lined up in the near future. So, what are your future goals?

Well, I always like to be in the present and my focus right now is the HIL. Will take one step at a time.

UP Rudras' First Match In HIL 2024-25

Lalit Upadhyay's UP Rudras will begin their campaign against Kalinga Lancers on Monday, 30th December at the Birsa Munda International Hockey Stadium in Rourkela, from 8:15 PM IST onwards.

Watch the Hockey India League 28th December 2024 onwards at 7:30 PM IST live on Sony Sports Ten 1 SD & HD, Sony Sports Ten 3 SD & HD (Hindi), Sony Sports Ten 4 SD & HD (Tamil & Telugu)