New Delhi: The 20-member Indian Men’s Hockey Team was announced on Friday by Hockey India for the upcoming Men’s Asian Champions Trophy, which will be contested between December 14 and 22, 2021 in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
India, the defending champions, will play Korea on the first day of the tournament. In this edition, they will compete in a single-pool competition against Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, and the hosts Bangladesh for the title.
The Indian team will see Manpreet Singh Captain the side along with Harmanpreet Singh who will be his deputy. The team includes goalkeepers Krishan B Pathak and Suraj Karkera. India’s defence will see Harmanpreet Singh lead the charge along with Gurinder Singh, Jarmanpreet Singh, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, Dipsan Tirkey, Varun Kumar and Mandeep Mor. With this line-up India will have four options for drag flick. The midfield will see Hardik Singh, Manpreet Singh, Jaskaran Singh, Sumit, Rajkumar Pal, Shamsher Singh and the experienced Akashdeep Singh.
The forwardline will be led by Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Dilpreet Singh, Gursahibjit Singh and Shilanand Lakra.
“While selecting this team we now must have our eyes on the future. It takes a deep and strong squad to build sustained success so players have to be given opportunities to perform,” said Chief Coach Graham Reid.
“We have picked a team that has a good mix of experience and younger guys who will have their chance to show what they can do. It is a hectic match schedule and given the COVID situation FIH & AHF have allowed 18 players to be chosen each game out of a greater squad of 20. The Asian Champions Trophy is a World Class event that will provide all teams a fantastic opportunity to start the next Olympiad with much needed competition. We are looking forward to the challenge,” he added.
India’s first match will be against Korea on December 14, followed by a match against Bangladesh on December 15. On the 17th of December, they will play archrival Pakistan, and on the 18th, they will play Malaysia, followed by their encounter against Japan on the 19th of December. On December 21, the Semi-Finals will be held, followed by the Final on December 22.
The last edition of this tournament, held in Muscat, Oman, saw India and Pakistan share the championship when the final was cancelled due to heavy rains.
