Manpreet Singh will return to the midfield after being named as a defender in the European leg of the Pro League while Lalit Upadhyay and four other forwards have been left out as India announced their squad for the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy. The tournament will be hosted as the Mayor Radhakrishnan Stadium in Chennai from August 3 to 12.
Dragflicker Harmanpreet Singh will continue to be captain while midfielder Hardik Singh is his deputy. Veteran PR Sreejesh and Krishan Bahadur Pathak have been named as the team’s goalkeepers, while the team also include stalwarts such as defender Amit Rohidas, midfielder Vivek Sagar Prasad and former captain Manpreet, among others.
Apart from Lalit, Abhishek Mishra, Pawan, Dilpreet Singh and Simranjeet Singh, who are all currently with the Indian squad in Spain gearing up for the the 100th Anniversary Spanish Hockey Federation-International Tournament, have also been dropped.
India will be facing China in their first match on August 3 in what will be the third and last of the opening day matches. They then face Japan on August 4 and then Malaysia on August 6. India’s next opponents will be reigning champions South Korea on August 7 and their final match of the group stage is against arch-rivals Pakistan on August 9.
India and Pakistan are the joint most succesfull teams in the tournament, having the title three times each since it was first held in 2011. South Korea’s victory in the last edition marked the first time any side outside of India or Pakistan won the title, with the two teams in fact not even making the final. This is also the first time that India will be hosting the tournament.
Goalkeepers: PR Sreejesh, Krishan Bahadur Pathak
Defenders: Jarmanpreet Singh, Sumit, Jugraj Singh, Harmanpreet Singh (capt), Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas
Midfielders: Hardik Singh (vice-captain), Vivek Sagar Prasad, Manpreet Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Shamsher Singh.
Forwards: Akashdeep Singh, Mandeep Singh, Gurjant Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, S Karthi.
