India take on China in opener

Bogged down by controversies in the past few months, the Indian hockey team begin their campaign in the Asian Champions Trophy against hosts China here on Saturday, marking the start of their preparations for the upcoming Olympic qualifiers.

It has been a turbulent last six months for Indian hockey, with the two federations slugging it out in court and then coming together in a compromise merger, key players S a n d e e p Singh and Sardar Singh dropping out citing issues with the management and injuries ruling out star players such as Tushar Khandker, Shivendra Singh and Arjun Halappa.

Like hockey is trying to find its feet among the Mongol population in Ordos, so is new coach Michael Nobbs with the Indian team . The former midfielder is a believer in the Indian team and is hoping to give the boys a flying start against the hosts, no mean opponents even though they have lost some momentum in the years after their Korean coach Kim Sang Ryul left the team.