Harpal Singh bedi / New Delhi
Ace midfielder Manpreet Singh was on Wednesday retained captain of the 18-member Indian Men’s Hockey Team for the 28th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup to begin in Ipoh, Malaysia on 23 March
The tournament will see hosts Malaysia, Canada, Korea, South Africa, India and the Asian Games Champions Japan in the fray.
The Indian team who begin their campaign against Japan on 23 March will miss the services of experienced forwards SV Sunil, Akashdeep Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Lalit Upadhyay, and defenders Rupinder Pal Singh, Harmanpreet Singh as well as midfielder Chinglensana Singh who were unavailable for selection due to injury.
Junior players Vishal Antil and Pardeep Singh too were not available for selection of the Indian team for the 28th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2019 owing to injury
“It is unfortunate we will be missing some key players for the 28th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2019 due to injury. However, it is important for them to return to 100 per cent fitness ahead of the FIH Series Final, Bhubaneswar 2019 which is a crucial tournament in our quest for Olympic berth and hence will continue to remain in Bengaluru and work on their rehabilitation,” stated David John, Director High Performance, Hockey India.
The Indian team features experienced goalkeeper PR Sreejesh and youngster Krishan B Pathak in the goal-post while the defence will see Vice Captain Surender Kumar joined by Gurinder Singh, Birendra Lakra, Kothajit Singh Khadangbam along with dragflickers Varun Kumar and Amit Rohidas.
In the midfield Skipper Manpreet Singh will lead the charge alongside young guns Vivek Sagar Prasad, Hardik Singh, Sumit and Nilakanta Sharma. The forwardline will see Mandeep Singh, Simranjeet Singh, Gurjant Singh, Shilanand Lakra and Sumit Kumar.
Speaking about the Indian team for Sultan Azlan Shah Cup John said, “It is a relatively young side but each of these players have tremendous potential and have a good amount of International exposure. It is important to see how they fair in Malaysia as it will show the depth we possess in the Core Group ahead of the Olympic Qualification events this year.”