India name full-strength men's squad for CWG, Manpreet Singh returns as captain

Hockey India (HI) had initially decided to send a second-string team to the CWG due to the short turnaround time between the Birmingham event and the Hangzhou Asian Games, which is a qualifier for the 2024 Paris Olympics. However, with the Asian Games now postponed to next year owing to the COVID-19 situation in China, HI decided to pick a strong team for the prestigious event, scheduled to begin from July 28. The Indian team has been grouped in pool B along with England, Canada, Wales and Ghana.

The two-time former silver medallists will begin their campaign on July 31 against Ghana. Manpreet had led the Indian team to a historic bronze medal at the Olympic Games in Tokyo last year and he will take over the reins from Amit Rohidas, who was the captain for the FIH Pro League tour of Belgium and the Netherlands. Harmanpreet, who has been named the deputy, emerged as the highest goal scorer of the FIH Hockey Pro League.

"We have gone with a tried-and-tested team for the Commonwealth Games. These players have the experience of playing top teams in high pressure games in the FIH Pro League which was a good exposure for us ahead of the prestigious quadrennial event," chief coach Graham Reid said in a release. "After a brief break when we return home from the Netherlands, we will resume camp in SAI, Bengaluru where we will analyze our performance against Belgium and Netherlands.