Indian Hockey Team for Commonwealth Games 2018 announced

New Delhi: Hockey India on tuesday announced the 18 member Indian Hockey Team for Commonwealth Games 2018. Senior players like Ramandeep Singh and Sardar Singh are ignored for the prestigious tournament.

The team will be led by Manpreet Singh who helped India win Asia Cup in Dhaka last year followed by a bronze at Hockey World League finals at Bhubaneswar. Midfielder Chinglensana Singh will serve as the vice captain of the team.

Veteran goalkeeper PR Sreejesh makes a comeback in the team after suffering from a injury he caught in Asia Cup last year. He will be accompanied by fellow UP Wizards goalie Suraj Karkera, who has showed promises playing for the national team in the recent while.

In Defense: India’s ace drag flicker Rupinder Pal Singh will guard India’s fortress alongside Varun Kumar, Kothajit Singh, Gurinder Singh, Amit Rohidas and Harmanpreet Singh. Indian team will have four drag flick experts in Harmanpreet, Rupinder, Amit and Varun.

In Midfield: Experienced Manpreet Singh will be the link between defense and forward line alongside Chinglensana Singh, Sumit and Vivek Sagar Prasad.

Read: Hockey India allready eyeing Junior world cup title defense by introducing younger talents ?

Forward Line: India’s goal scoring ability will get a boost with the return of SV Sunil, who recently got married in Bangalore. Akashdeep Singh, Mandeep Singh, Gurjant Singh, Lalit Upadhyay and Dilpreet Singh will accompany him.

“This team has been picked keeping in mind the team’s performance in the previous tournaments since the Asia Cup 2017. We have tried out different combinations in the past events and we believe this will be the most effective combination for the Gold Coast 2018 XXI Commonwealth Games,” asserted Chief Coach Sjoerd Marijne.

“This team has been improving with every match and while we could not produce a podium finish at the 27th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup 2018, it will have no influence on how we are going to play in Australia and we will be going there with a mindset to win,” he added.

India has finished runner up in last two edition of CWG, loosing to Australia in the finals. Skipper Manpreet Singh, however, is confident of turning it around this time. “Our first aim is to do well in the group stage because we have some strong teams in our Pool. It’s extremely crucial to top our table and make the Semis but if we do meet Australia in the knockouts, I believe we will be up for a strong challenge.” said the 25-year-old Manpreet Singh.

In History

Hockey is a part of Commonwealth Games since 1998 and Australia have won the gold in all the editions of the games. They have 5 gold to their name and will be eager to continue the streak. India on the other hand have been the second best with 2 silver.