Indian men's hockey team announced for European leg of FIH Pro League

Hockey India, on Thursday, announced the 24-member Indian men's hockey team that will feature in the upcoming European leg of the FIH Hockey Pro League.

The European leg will have two tournaments with the Belgium leg beginning on 22nd May and ending on 30th May while the England leg will commence on 1st June and conclude on 12th June.

India will play against Argentina, Belgium, Germany, and Great Britain twice each across both legs, beginning their campaign against Argentina on 22nd May. India is currently placed 3rd in the points table, with 15 points from eight matches.

Harmanpreet Singh will continue as the skipper of the team with Hardik Singh being named as his deputy,

The goalkeeping responsibilities will rest with PR Sreejesh and Krishan Bahadur Pathak, while the defensive line-up includes Jarmanpreet Singh, Amit Rohidas, Harmanpreet Singh, Sumit, Sanjay, Jugraj Singh and Vishnukant Singh.

The midfield section will be marshaled by dynamic players such as Vivek Sagar Prasad, Nilakanta Sharma, Manpreet Singh, Shamsher Singh, Hardik Singh, Rajkumar Pal, and Mohd. Raheel Mouseen.

The forward line boasts of Mandeep Singh, Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Gurjant Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Araijeet Singh Hundal, and Boby Singh Dhami.

Speaking on the team selection Chief Coach Craig Fulton said, “We have been training hard at the camp and have developed an understanding of each other’s gameplay. 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.”

Meanwhile, Captain Harmanpreet Singh said, “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. We had a camp in SAI, Bengaluru where we underwent rigorous training sessions and improved on the areas where we felt we needed to improve. We are looking forward to the matches and I hope that we get the results in our favour.”

Indian Men’s Hockey Team for FIH Pro League

Goalkeepers: Sreejesh Parattu Raveendran, 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, Boby Singh Dhami