Hockey India on Thursday announced a list of 60 players for the senior men’s national camp which commences from January 3, 2022, at the Sports Authority of India, Bengaluru.
The players have been selected based on their performance at the recently concluded 11th Hockey India Senior Men National Championship at Pimpri Chinchwad near Pune, 11th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2021, Kovilpatti, Tamil Nadu and other Hockey India sanctioned domestic events.
The list includes retained players from both junior and senior men’s core groups, who have been selected based on their performance in the recent international tournaments. This 60-member list will be further pruned to 33 ahead of their preparations for the FIH Pro League 2022 matches.
Senior players like veteran goalkeeper PR Sreejesh, who was rested for the Asian Champions Trophy in Bangladesh, and midfielder Vivek Sagar Prasad, who too was rested after the Junior World Cup in Bhubaneswar, have been included. Junior World Cup stars Sanjay and Yashdeep Siwach are also among the probables. Eight members of the junior world cup team including forward and drag-flicker Araijeet Singh Hundal have not been included as they are still in the junior 17-19 age bracket and eligible for the next Junior World Cup.
“These 60 players have earned their spot on the back of their recent performances in international and the domestic circuit,” said Graham Reid, Chief Coach, Indian men’s hockey team.
“We have selected players from the recently held national championships such as 11th Hockey India Senior Men National Championship Pimpri Chinchwad 2021, 11th Hockey India Junior Men National Championship 2021, Kovilpatti, Tamil Nadu and other Hockey India sanctioned domestic events,” he added.
“Those who have been selected from the previous 33 senior men’s core probable group, it will be very important for them to maintain their level to ensure they are picked in the final list of 33,” said Reid.
“We are already in the new Olympic cycle now, so everything starts from zero. It’s really important to move ahead and start afresh. With the FIH Pro League, Asian Games 2022, and various other top-level tournaments lined up ahead, it will be very crucial for us to have a strong pool of 33 as we gear up for the challenging 2022 season,” added Reid.
The next assignment for the Indian senior men’s national team is the FIH Pro League matches against Canada on February 8 at Potchefstroom, South Africa. The match is likely to be postponed or the venue changed considering that international travel to South Africa is still restricted because of the Covid-19 pandemic spread in the country.
The probables:
Goalkeepers: Sreejesh P.R, Krishan B Pathak, Suraj Karkera, Prashant Kumar Chauhan, Pawan, Kamalbir Singh, Pankaj Kumar Rajak, Ayush Dwivedi; Defenders: Harmanpreet Singh, Amit Rohidas, Surender Kumar, Varun Kumar, Gurinder Singh, Jarmanpreet Singh, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, Dipsan Tirkey, Mandeep Mor, Sanjay, Yashdeep Siwach, Dinachandra Singh Moirangthem, Abhisek Lakra, Manjeet, Mohd Faraz, Parampreet Singh; Midfielders: Manpreet Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Sumit; Hardik Singh, Jaskaran Singh, Rajkumar Pal, Shamsher Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Rabichandra Singh Moirangthem, Mareeswaran Sakthivel, Biju Ekka, Sheshe Gowda B M, Ashis Kumar Topno, Jugraj Singh, Bharath K R, Likhith BM, Keshav Tyagi, Sushil Dhanwar; Forwards: Simranjeet Singh, Gurjant Singh; Mandeep Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Akashdeep Singh, Gursahibjit Singh, Shilanand Lakra, Dilpreet Singh, Maninder Singh, S. Karthi, Prabhjot Singh, Pardeep Singh, Abhishek, Abharan Sudev, Mohd. Raheel, Sukhjeet Singh, Pawan Rajbhar, Mohd Umar.
