Indian men's hockey team leaves for Asian Games

India look to extend impressive run at Asian Games; Harmanpreet to lead; team confident in preparation; goal to finish on podium

The Indian men's hockey team will look to extend its impressive run at the Asian Games in Hangzhou beginning September 23.

India will begin their campaign against Uzbekistan on September 24. India is placed in Pool A, alongside Pakistan, Japan, Bangladesh, Singapore, and Uzbekistan. Pool B consists of Korea, Malaysia, China, Oman, Thailand, and Indonesia.

The top two teams from each Pool will qualify for the semifinals.

Harmanpreet Singh will lead the team once again, with Hardik serving as his deputy.

"The team has been rigorously preparing for the Asian Games and we performed well at the recently concluded Asian Champions Trophy Chennai, so the goal is to maintain that level of performance," said Harmanpreet before the Indian team left for Hangzhou.

"We have some tough opponents in our Pool, but we are confident in our preparation and hope to finish on the podium." The team includes goalkeepers P.R. Sreejesh and Krishan Pathak. Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Jarmanpreet Singh, Harmanpreet Singh, and Sanjay are the defenders selected for the Asian Games.

The midfield will be anchored by Nilakanta Sharma, Hardik Singh, Manpreet Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Sumit, and Shamsher Singh, while the attack will be led by Abhishek, Gurjant Singh, Mandeep Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, and Lalit Kumar Upadhyay.