The Indian men’s hockey team will look to press the restart button after a successful Olympic campaign and defend its Asian Champions Trophy title when it opens its campaign against hosts China on Sunday.
After bagging back-to-back Olympic bronze medals, India will start as favourites to defend their ACT title against top hockey playing nations of Asia in the form of China, Japan, Pakistan, Korea and Malaysia. Last year, India won the title at home, making them the only team to bag four titles in the history of the tournament.
The stage is set for the prestigious Hero Men’s Asian Champions Trophy which will begin on 8th September here at the picturesque Moqi Hockey Training Base which overlooks the Nierji Dam in Hulunbuir, Inner Mongolia in China.
India will begin their campaign with the opening match against hosts China followed by their second match on 9th September against Japan. Following a day’s rest, India will take on last year’s runners-up Malaysia on 11th and play Korea on 12th September. After a day’s break, India will take on nemesis Pakistan on 14th while the Semi-Final and Final will be held on 16th and 17th September respectively.
The team’s skipper Harmanpreet Singh is keen on continuing India’s dominance in the continental championships this year too. He said, “The Asian Champions Trophy last year gave us the right momentum going into the Asian Games and followed it up with the Olympic Games triumph of standing on the podium yet again. This time too, we want to begin the fresh Olympic cycle by winning this tournament.”
India vs China: Head-to-Head in ACT
India has gotten the better of China 4 times out of 5, having dominated the side except for in 2013. The most recent meeting between the two saw India demolish China 9-0 at the 2016 Asian Champions Trophy.
India’s Schedule at the Asian Champions Trophy 2024:
vs China – September 8 – 3:30pm
vs Japan – September 9 – 1:15pm
vs Malaysia – September 11 – 1:15pm
vs South Korea – September 12 – 1:15pm
vs Pakistan – September 14 – 1:15pm
India’s Squad for the Asian Champions Trophy 2024:
Krishan Bahadur Pathak, Krishan Bahadur Pathak, Jarmanpreet Singh, Sumit, Jugraj Singh, Harmanpreet Singh (captain), Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Hardik Singh (vice-captain), Vivek Sagar Prasad, Manpreet Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Shamsher Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Mandeep Singh, Gurjant Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, S Karthi.
(with inputs from PTI)
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