Vinaya returns but Yuvraj, Rupinder on road to recovery

BANGALORE: Four players among the 45 probables will look forward to the hockey camp, beginning at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in New Delhi from Sunday, with all eagerness for various reasons.

Dragflicker Rupinder Pal Singh and striker Yuvraj Walmiki, who were undergoing rehab at the Bangalore camp which ended on Friday after having sustained injuries at the Johannesburg Champions Challenge, will hope to return to action sooner than later. But that is easier said than done as the country’s preparations for the Olympic qualifiers in February enter the homestretch.

Midfielder VS Vinaya, who last played for the country in the European tour in 2009, will relish the recall and aim to cement his place in the team, particularly after having fruitfully spent the last few seasons playing for Barcelona in the Spanish League. “I am happy to be back in the Indian camp. During the time I was out I played a lot of domestic tournaments, but what helped me most was my stint with Barcelona,” he said.

The other player hoping to return to the mainstream is Gurvinder Chandi, who copped a five-match ban after the infamous brawl against Pakistan during the series in Australia late last year.

He would be hoping that the five-match Test series against South Africa, accorded official status by the International Hockey Federation, will help him serve the ban before he returns to action in the qualifiers.

Rupinder and Yuvraj are recovering and may figure in the last two Test matches if they are fit enough. Rupinder has a hairline fracture in the right femur bone and has been advised six weeks rehab while Yuvraj, who has a hip injury, has been advised four weeks of rehab.

The number of men probables has come down from 48 to 45 with a majority of them flying out from Bangalore to Delhi on Saturday. Rajpal Singh, Sardar Singh and Sandeep Singh will join the probables in Delhi.

The probables were joined by chief coach Michael Nobbs and exercise physiologist David John who arrived in New Delhi after a short break in Australia.