File photo of Indian hockey team.© AFP
The Indian men's hockey team will look to press the restart button after a successful Olympic campaign and defend its Asian Champions Trophy title when it open its campaign against hosts China in Hulunbuir, China on Sunday. After bagging back-to-back Olympic bronze medals, India will start as favourites to defend their ACT title against top hockey playing nations of Asia in the form of China, Japan, Pakistan, Korea and Malaysia. Last year, India won the title at home, making them the only team to bag four titles in the history of the tournament.
Back from a short break after the Paris Olympics, India skipper Harmanpreet Singh is keen on continuing their dominance in the continental championships.
"The Asian Champions Trophy last year gave us the right momentum going into the Asian Games and followed it up with the Olympic Games triumph of standing on the podium yet again. This time too, we want to begin the fresh Olympic cycle by winning this tournament," Harmanpreet said ahed of their tournament opener.
"While we have 10 members from the Olympic side playing in this tournament, we have a few youngsters trying to make their impact in the team.
"In terms of game point-of-view, our attacking and penalty corners are our forte but we will be looking to play a structured defence, particularly against teams like Japan, Malaysia and Pakistan. This is an important tournament for us in terms of world ranking points and we are ready for the challenge," he added.
After China, India will take on Japan in their second match on September 9, followed by games against last year's runners-up Malaysia on September 11, Korea on September 12 and arch-rivals Pakistan on September 14.
The semifinal and final are scheduled for September 16 and 17.
India's schedule for Men's Asian Champions Trophy 2024:
vs China - September 8 - 3:30pm
vs Japan - September 9 - 1:15pm
vs Malaysia - September 11 - 1:15pm
vs South Korea - September 12 - 1:15pm
vs Pakistan - September 14 - 1:15pm
India Squad:
Goalkeepers - Krishan Bahadur Pathak, Suraj Karkera
Defenders - Jarmanpreet Singh, Amit Rohidas, Harmanpreet Singh (C), Jugraj Singh, Sanjay, Sumit
Midfielders - Raj Kumar Pal, Nilakanta Sharma, Vivek Sagar Prasad (VC), Manpreet Singh, Mohammed Raheel Mouseen
Forwards - Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, Araijeet Singh Hundal, Uttam Singh, Gurjot Singh
With PTI Inputs