Hockey India named a 24-member squad for the upcoming FIH Hockey Pro League, which will kick off on May 22. The tournament will take place at Antwerp in Belgium and London in England. Harmanpreet Singh-led India are set to play eight matches against Argentina, Belgium, Germany and Great Britain twice each across both legs.
According to Hockey India's media statement, the Belgium leg will be held in Antwerp, Belgium on May 22 and end on May 22 while the England leg will begin on June 1 and end on June 12. India currently stand in third place in the points table with 15 points from eight matches. The side behind Netherlands and Australia.
We will play against top-quality teams: India hockey coach Craig Fulton
"We have been training hard at the camp and have developed an understanding of each other’s gameplay," Fulton said in an HI release.
"Ahead of the Paris Olympics, we will play against top quality teams which will help us build on our game and get better through. This will be an opportunity and will go a long way in evaluating where we stand as a team and as individual players. It will be a great way to figure out our strengths and what areas we would need to touch upon,” he added.
Meanwhile, captain Harmanpreet said that we have selected a squad to give players exposure ahead of the Paris Olympics 2024.
“We are looking forward to getting on with the season in the Olympic year with the FIH Hockey Pro League where we will play top-quality teams. We have chosen a squad to give players exposure and it will also allow me to see some of the players in competition mode ahead of the Paris Olympics,” Harmanpreet said.
Notably, dynamic midfielder Hardik Singh has been appointed as Harmanpreet’s deputy.
India’s 24-member men’s squad for Europe leg
Goalkeepers: PR Sreejesh, Krishan Bahadur Pathak; Defenders: Jarmanpreet Singh, Amit Rohidas, Harmanpreet Singh, Sumit, Sanjay, Jugraj Singh, Vishnukant Singh
Midfielders: Vivek Sagar Prasad, Nilakanta Sharma, Manpreet Singh, Shamsher Singh, Hardik Singh, Rajkumar Pal, Mohd. Raheel Mouseen
Forwards: Mandeep Singh, Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Gurjant Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Araijeet Singh Hundal and Boby Singh Dhami.
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