BHUBANESWAR: India hockey team captain Manpreet Singh will lead a 20-member contingent in the Men's Asian Champions Trophy, scheduled to be held in Dhaka from December 14- 22. Veteran goalkeeper PR Sreejesh is not in the squad.
Defending champions India will begin their campaign on the opening day against South Korea. The single-pool tournament also has teams such as Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan and hosts Bangladesh. Harmanpreet Singh will be Manpreet's deputy. The forward-line will be led by Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Dilpreet Singh, Gursahibjit Singh and Shilanand Lakra. Chief coach Graham Reid said after the announcement of the squad that the players had been selected keeping an eye on the future, as India have a busy schedule in 2022, where not only will they play in the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China — which is the automatic qualification event for the 2024 Paris Olympics — but also the FIH Pro League and possibly the Commonwealth Games.
India will play their second match against Bangladesh on December 15. Their third match will be against arch-rivals Pakistan on December 17 and on December 18, India will take on Malaysia followed by their match against Japan on December 19. The semifinals will be played on December 21 followed by the Final on December 22. IANS
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