Kakinada (A.P.), Feb 14 : Top contenders Hockey Punjab will take on Hockey Gujarat in a Group F encounter in the opening match of the 13th Hockey India Senior Women National Championship here on Wednesday. Uttar Pradesh Hockey will meet Hockey Bengal in the second match in the same group later in the day as players from 26 teams from various states and Union Territories will be vying for top honours in the premier domestic tournament. With the National Selectors watching these matches closely, top-performing players will stand a chance to break into the Hockey India national programme with a call-up for the national coaching camp. The championships begin with group stage matches with teams divided into 8 groups. The toppers of each group will advance to the quarterfinals. Pool A consists of the Hockey Association of Odisha, Hockey Rajasthan and Kerala Hockey. Pool B has Hockey Karnataka, Hockey Chandigarh and Goans Hockey. Similarly, Pool C has Hockey in Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh Hockey and Hockey Uttarakhand. In Pool D Hockey Haryana, Assam Hockey and Hockey Bihar are grouped together and in Pool E, Uttar Pradesh Hockey, Hockey Andhra Pradesh and Hockey Bengal will battle for the top spot. Pool F has Hockey Punjab, Hockey Himachal and Hocket Gujarat. Hockey Madhya Pradesh, Delhi Hockey, Telangana Hockey and Manipur Hockey will compete from Pool G. Meanwhile, Pool H consists of Hockey Maharashtra, Hockey Unit of Tamil Nadu, Le Puducherry Hockey and Hockey Andaman & Nicobar. Speaking about the various initiatives taken by Hockey India to lift the profile of the marque national championships, Edgar Mascarhenas, head coach of defending champions Hockey Association of Odisha said, "This time around we have a good blend of experienced players as well as young blood, so it will be an excellent opportunity for the girls to play alongside the seniors. "Also, we have a few exciting things added to the Nationals, things like the captains line up, post-match presentation and player of the match awards, things that will give a morale boost to the players, drive the team to play as a unit and provide them with a taste of what playing international matches feels like," he was quoted as saying in a release by Hockey India. The nationals being held on par with International matches in India and being streamed live on Fancode is a testament to Hockey India's commitment to improving the standards of hockey feels Dharmendra, Head Coach of Hockey Karnataka who were the runners-up in the previous edition. "Hockey India has taken some imperative steps to improve the standard of the Nationals, they do their best to facilitate the players to showcase their abilities to the fullest, it does a lot for the morale of the youngsters looking to make it to the national squad." /IANS