New Delhi: Hockey India on Monday named a strong 24-member Indian team for the next leg of the FIH Hockey Pro League in Europe starting May 26.
In their previous outing in the League matches at home, India remained unbeaten against world champions Germany and Australia which helped them top the points table.
They will hope to continue their momentum against the formidable Belgium and Great Britain in London followed by matches against the Dutch and Argentina in Eindhoven, the Netherlands.
This will be the team's first outing under new chief coach Craig Fulton. The team will continue to be led by ace dragflicker and defender Harmanpreet Singh with prolific midfielder Hardik Singh as his deputy.
The team features goalkeepers Krishan Bahadur Pathak, who returns after missing the home matches due to his wedding, and P R Sreejesh. The defenders' list includes five penalty corner specialists in Harmanpreet Singh, Amit Rohidas, Jarmanpreet Singh, Sanjay and Mandeep Mor.
Manpreet Singh, who was the cynosure of India's midfield, will be seen in a new role, playing in the backline along with Sumit and Gurinder Singh.
The midfield will be led by Hardik along with Dilpreet Singh, Moirangthem Rabichandra Singh, Shamsher Singh, Akashdeep Singh and Vivek Sagar Prasad. The forward line sees the return of Simranjeet Singh, who had to return home from the Asia Cup in Jakarta midway due to injury issues. He will be joined by a good mix of experienced and young set of strikers like Abhishek, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, S Karthi, Gurjant Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Raj Kumar Pal and Mandeep Singh.
Speaking about the team selection, Fulton said, "I am pleased with the team we have selected. Our current world ranking of fourth reflects the team's hard work and dedication post the World Cup. This tournament will be a great opportunity for us to compete against top-ranked teams and further improve our overall game. We are looking forward to the challenge and hope to have a strong finish to the Pro League tournament."
Indian squad: Goalkeepers: Krishan Bahadur Pathak, P R Sreejesh.
Defenders: Harmanpreet Singh (capt), Amit Rohidas, Jarmanpreet Singh, Manpreet Singh, Sumit, Sanjay, Mandeep Mor, Gurinder Singh.
Midfielders: Hardik Singh (vice-capt), Dilpreet Singh, Moirangthem Rabichandra Singh, Shamsher Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad.
Forwards: Abhishek, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, S Karthi, Gurjant Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Raj Kumar Pal, Mandeep Singh, Simranjeet Singh.
