Forward Akashdeep Singh, who scored four goals in the recent Asian Champions Trophy, was left out of the Indian men’s hockey squad for the Asian Games. Jugraj Singh and Selvam Karthi also missed the cut.
Harmanpreet Singh will helm the team while Savita Punia will continue to lead the women’s team.
The teams were announced at a send-off ceremony hosted by Hockey India here on Thursday. The players and their family members were felicitated on the occasion.
Odisha Minister for Electronics and IT, Sports And Youth Services And Home, Tusharkanti Behera, Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey, Hockey India secretary General Bhola Nath Singh, and former hockey internationals A.B. Subbaiah and Sabu Varkey were some of the dignitaries present at the event.
The men’s team will open its Hangzhou Asian Games campaign against Uzbekistan on September 24. The women’s team takes on Singapore on September 27.
The squads: Men: Harmanpreet Singh (captain), P.R. Sreejesh, Krishan Pathak, Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Jarmanpreet Singh, Sanjay, Sumit, Nilakanta Sharma, Hardik Singh (vice captain), Manpreet Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Shamsher Singh, Abhishek, Gurjant Singh, Mandeep Singh, Sukhjeet Singh and Lalit Kumar Upadhyay.
Women: Savita Punia (captain), Bichu Devi Kharibam, Deepika, Lalremsiami, Monika, Navneet Kaur, Neha, Nisha, Sonika, Udita, Ishika Chaudhary, Deep Grace Ekka (vice captain), Vandana Katariya, Sangita Kumari, Vaishnavi Vittal Phalke, Nikki Pradhan, Sushila Chanu and Salima Tete.
