Men’s hockey team returns to India after winning Asian Champions Trophy
The Indian side led by captain Harmanpreet Singh secured the trophy for the fifth time after beating hosts China 1-0 in the final at the Moqi Hockey Training Base on Tuesday.
Hockey India on Monday named the 27-member team led by drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh for the Australia Tour with the first match starting on 6 April in Perth, Australia.
Vice Captained by midfielder Hardik Singh the five-match tour will be a litmus test for the team in their preparations for the Olympic Paris 2024.
The team will feature PR Sreejesh, Krishan B Pathak, Suraj Karkera, Harmanpreet Singh, Araijeet Singh Hundal, Mandeep Singh, Dilpreet Singh, Gurjant Singh, Hardik Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Jugraj Singh, Vishnukant Singh, Raj Kumar Pal, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Boby Singh Dhami, Nilakanta Sharma, Sumit, Sanjay, Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, Shamsher Singh, Manpreet Singh, Amir Ali, Mohammed Raheel Mouseen, Jarmanpreet Singh and Amit Rohidas.
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Chief Coach Craig Fulton has opted to go with the almost entire core group in order to give players optimum chance to showcase their potential before the final 16-member team is selected for the Olympics.
“This will be a very important tour for us as it will not only ascertain the level we are at and the areas we want to get better ahead of the Paris Olympics but this is also an important tournament for the players. We chose to go with the almost entire core group so that each player gets enough opportunity to showcase their full potential and also it is a good tour to test different combinations,” he said.
“Playing against a team like Australia who are one of the potential podium finishers in Paris will be challenging and at the same time an enriching experience for the level of competition they bring to the matches. It will be a good exposure trip and we are looking forward to it,” he added.
The team will be playing matches starting 6th April, with their second match on April 7 followed by a match on 10th April, 12th and 13th April.
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