India's team for four-nation hockey tournament in Spain announced
On Friday, July 7, Hockey India announced the team for the upcoming four-nation international tournament in Spain. The 24-member men's hockey team will take on England, Netherlands, and hosts Spain in Terrasa from July 25 to July 30.
With Asian Champions Trophy 2023 just a few days away, this tournament will serve as a perfect preparation event for the nations. Notably, The Asian Champions Trophy 2023 will be followed by the Asian Games, which will be held in Hangzhou, China.
In the 24-member team, Harmanpreet Singh has been named as the captain. The defender will continue to lead the Indian men's team. The experienced mid-fielder Hardik Singh has been named as the vice-captain for the International event.
Sreejesh Parattu Raveendran and Krishan Bahadur Pathak are the two goalkeepers named for the event. Apart from the captain Harmanpreet Singh, the Indian defense will feature Jarmanpreet Singh, Manpreet Singh, Sanjay, Amit Rohidas, Varun Kumar, and Nilam Sanjeep Xess.
This event will mark the return of the duo Varun Kumar and Sanjeep Xess. They missed a berth in the recent FIH Pro League match, which took place in Belgium. It will be interesting to see if the duo finds a place in the upcoming Asia Champions Trophy as well.
Sumit and Nilakanta Sharma are the other two players who are back on the team after missing out on the FIH Pro League matches. Sumit and Nilakanta will have the support of Hardik Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, and Raj Kumar Pal in the mid-field.
The all-important forward line will be led by Lalit Kumar and Mandeep Singh along with Simranjeet Singh, Dilpreet Singh, Abhishek, Pawan, and Karthi Selvam.
India team for Four-Nation Hockey Tournament
Forwards: Lalit Kumar, Mandeep Singh, Simranjeet Singh, Dilpreet Singh, Gurjant Singh, Abhishek, Karthi Selvam, Pawan.
Defenders: Harmanpreet Singh (C), Jarmanpreet Singh, Manpreet Singh, Varun Kumar, Amit Rohitdas, Sanjay, Nilam Sandeep Xess
Midfielders: Hardik Singh (VC), Shamsher Singh, Vivek Sagar, Nilakanta Sharma, Rajkumar Pal
Goalkeepers: Sreejesh P, Krishan Bahadur Pathak