Harmanpreet is in the running for the Player of the Year award, while Sreejesh has been shortlisted for the Goalkeeper of the Year honor.
It has been 18 years since the two nations last clashed in a bilateral hockey series. Ikram remarked that such series are beyond FIH’s control, depending on federations’ decisions amid political dynamics.
In the Men’s category, the spectacle continued as Hockey Association of Odisha clinched the title by overcoming Hockey Jharkhand in a thrilling 6-6 (4-3 SO) match.
Sreejesh, who will be featuring in his fourth Olympics this year, refused to believe that the upcoming edition in Paris could be his last outing in the sporting extravaganza.
The team returns to the camp after a successful outing in the FIH Hockey Pro League 2023-24, where it is currently placed third after claiming 15 points from eight matches across Bhubaneswar and Rourkela legs.
Mumtaz (4th, 23th minutes) and Deepika (6th, 29th) struck twice, while Mariana Kujur (23rd) was the other goal scorer for India.
After losing 0-4 to Germany in the tournament’s semi-final, Pakistan went down 2-3 to New Zealand in the third-place match last night, ending their chances of making it to this year’s Paris Olympics as only the top-three made the cut.
Hockey India has announced a 39-member core group for the Men’s National Coaching Camp, starting on January 3, 2024. The 11-day camp will prepare the team for a 4 Nation Tournament in Cape Town, South Africa, and their FIH Hockey Pro League campaign opener in Odisha.
Both the Indian hockey teams will begin their campaign against Spain in Valencia on December 15.
Harmanpreet led squad defeated defending champions Japan by 5-1 and now has confirmed a spot in the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Last edition’s silver medallist India, the highest-ranked team in the tournament at world number seven, was no match to world number China, who were the bronze medallist in 2018 in Jakarta.
On September 27, India will play Singapore in the prestigious event’s opening match.
India (2771) are back into the top-3, after more than year since dropping out in May 2022. The elevation happened due to their undefeated run in the Asian Champions Trophy 2023 in Chennai last month.
The seventh edition of the tournament will be a joint venture between Hockey India and the Government of Jharkhand.
The two Asian powerhouses met in Jakarta during the 2022 Asia Cup.
Solidifying Men in Blue’s position at the top of the points table and guaranteeing them a semifinal spot.
India’s opening game on Thursday against China saw the hosts winning 7-2, with six of the goals resulting through the corner.
From 3 to 12 August, the tournament will feature the continent’s best six nations, including Pakistan.
The German tour is set to help the Indian team prepare for the Asian Games, which is also a qualification event for next year’s Paris Olympics.
