The Hindu: Harjeet to lead junior team

Midfielder Harjeet Singh will continue to lead as the junior Indian men’s hockey team aims to defend its title at the 5th Sultan of Johor Cup later this month.

The 18-member squad for the tournament, to be played from October 11-18, was announced on Monday and the two-time defending champion is keen to make it a hat-trick this time around. India beat Great Britain 2-1 in the final last year with a winner in the dying minutes.

The tournament also saw young drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh, come of age as the top-scorer for India.

This time around, India would open its campaign in the competition, played in round-robin format, against Pakistan, whom it thrashed 6-0 in the previous edition.

Australia, Great Britain, Argentina and host Malaysia are the other teams in the fray. The Indian side recently finished fourth at the Volvo Invitational Tournament.

“We are not allowing the pressure of being defending champion overwhelm us. The team is in a very good shape and we are undergoing strenuous training. There is a huge improvement in our passing and scoring,” Harjeet said.

“The boys are confident and aim to retain the title. Our opening match is against Pakistan and the boys are excited about their clash against them. We have understood our past mistakes and the team is geared up for the challenge,” coach Harendra Singh said.

The squad:

Goalkeepers: Suraj Karkera, Vikas Dahiya; Defenders: Varun Kumar, Dipsan Tirkey, Anand Lakra, Vikramjit Singh, Harmanpreet Singh; Midfielders: Nilakanta Sharma, Harjeet Singh, Santa Singh, Simranjeet Singh, Manpreet; Forwards: Arman Qureshi, Gurjant Singh, Ajay Yadav, Parvinder Singh, Sumit Kumar, Ajit Kumar Pandey.

Schedule: October 11: India vs Pakistan, October 12: India vs Great Britain, October 14: India vs Argentina (all at 4.05 p.m.), October 15: India vs Malaysia (6.05 p.m.), October 17: India vs Australia (4.05 p.m.); October 18: classification matches.