Indian women’s football team star Bala Devi has hailed the recent changes in the national set-up and said they have helped the players in innumerable ways.
The team is currently undergoing a camp for the forthcoming back-to- back international friendlies against Vietnam on Nov 3 and 6.
“Since making my debut in 2005, I have been playing in the national team for more than a decade now. But there has been a string of recent changes, and all for good,” she said. We have seen some considerable changes in the dietary regime, training sessions, and most importantly video analysis off late.
“Laying out a proper diet plan, carbohydrate balance, protein intake, are aspects which are being taken being care of nowadays, and all of that helps players recover faster.”
She also highlighted the change in the fitness regime in the camp.
“Compared to earlier days, we spend more time in the gym nowadays. We stress on core exercises. These processes significantly reduce the chances of injuries, and accelerate the recovery process which is of paramount importance from a player’s vantage point,” she said.
However, Bala added that all of that would have fallen flat on its face had the senior women’s team not got the much-needed exposure, which gave them “the opportunity to gauge where we stand, and put all into effect”.
“Since Jan 2019, we have played around 20 International matches. We played in the COTIF Cup, away matches against Hong Kong, Indonesia, Uzbekistan, and now we are slated to travel to Vietnam.