India's men's hockey team hammered lowly Indonesia 17-0 to open its title defence on a rousing note at the Asian Games, in Jakarta, on Monday.
Four key players, including ace drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh and midfielder S K Uthappa, were dropped from India's 18-man squad for the Hockey World League semi-final, in Antwerp, Belgium, from June 20 to July 5. Besides Rupinder and Uthappa, forwards Mandeep Singh and Satbir Singh got the axe.
Brushing aside the disappointing show against Argentina in the tournament opener, hosts India produced a much-improved performance as they held Olympic champions Germany to a 1-1 draw in their second Pool B match of the Hockey World League (HWL) Final.
Oil & Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), Delhi, rode on a fine hat-trick from Akashdeep Singh to trounce Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), Bangalore, 5-2, while Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), Bangalore, struggled to overcome South Central Railway (SCR), Secunderabad 1-0 in the semi-finals on Friday.
Defender Gurinder Singh, midfielders Sumit and Manpreet who were part of the Junior World Cup-winning squad are slated to make their debut at the tournament.
After a goalless opening two quarters, Nick Ross broke the deadlock for New Zealand in the 41st minute. But the hosts' joy was short lived as India equalised two minutes later through a field goal from SV Sunil (43rd).
The Indian men's hockey team beat Oman 3-0 to register their first victory in the third Asian Champions Trophy at Kakamigahara, Japan, on Tuesday.
The Indian men's hockey team went down fighting 1-2 to hosts Belgium in their second practice match on Saturday, ahead of the Fintro FIH World League Semi-Finals which will get underway in Antwerp from June 20.
The Indian team are in Pool B along with Pakistan, Malaysia, Wales, England, and will begin their campaign on April 7 against Pakistan.
Striker Gurwinder Singh Chandi failed to make the cut as Hockey India announced an 18-member squad, led by Sadar Singh, for the eight-nation Hero men's Champions Trophy, in Bhubaneswar, from December 6-14. Lalit Upadhyay, who was capped nine times earlier, has been drafted in place of Chandi in the squad, named by Hockey India selectors after trials at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium in Delhi on November 18.
India conceded a surprise early goal but made a fine comeback by pumping in four quick goals to beat minnows Scotland 4-1 in their opening match of Hockey World League semi-finals in London.
India put up a dominating performance to beat Malaysia 4-1 in the bronze medal play-off match on Sunday and finish at third position in the Four Nations Invitational Tournament in Melbourne.
Indian men's hockey team finished a disappointing fourth at the Commonwealth Games as it struggled to breach a stout England defence to lose the bronze medal match 1-2, in Gold Coast, on Saturday.
Rupinder Pal Singh (8th minute), Surender Kumar (15th), Mandeep Singh (44th) and Akashdeep Singh (60th) scored the goals for India.
Experienced drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh returned to India's men's hockey team, which also features debutant Jaskaran Singh, for the tour of Australia, starting May 10.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Dabang Mumbai and Kalinga Lancers entered the finals of the fifth edition of Coal India Hockey India League by winning their respective semi-finals against Delhi Waveriders and Uttar Pradesh Wizards at the Sector 42 Hockey Stadium in Chandigarh on Saturday.
Veteran midfielder Sardar Singh was on Friday dropped from India's 18-member squad for next month's Hockey World League Final, while the fit-again Rupinder Pal Singh and Birendra Lakra made comebacks.
The men's team last participated in an international competition in February last year when they played the FIH Hockey Pro League matches against Australia in Bhubaneswar.
The Indian men, ranked fifth in the world, had earlier defeated world number 22 Russia 4-2 in the first-leg on Friday.
Talented Chinglensana Singh and seasoned S V Sunil scored a goal each as the Indian men's hockey team started their tour of Europe with a 2-0 victory over hosts France on Monday.
SV Sunil struck the only goal of the match in the third quarter as India stun Australia 1-0 in the third hockey test to take a 2-1 lead in the four-match series in Perth on Saturday.
After a barren first quarter, Manpreet scored in the 21st and 26th minutes while drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh converted a penalty corner in the 36th as India registered their second consecutive win of the tournament.
The Indian men's hockey team secured a 3-2 win over New Zealand in a nail-biting third game to take an unassailable 2-1 lead in four-Test series at Christchurch on Friday.
Defending champions India made a mockery of Sri Lankan challenge pumping in 20 goals to remain unbeaten in the pool stages, setting up a tricky semi-final clash against Malaysia in the men's hockey competition at the Asian Games in Jakarta, on Tuesday.
India defeated Uzbekistan 10-0 in their last pool A match, on Monday, in the ongoing FIH Men's Series Finals at Kalinga Stadium
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday.
The Indian men's hockey team put up a clinical performance against Japan, demolishing the Asiad gold-medallists 9-0 for its third win in as many matches at the Hero Asian Champions Trophy in Muscat.
India are now atop the leaderboard with five points from two games, but the Manpreet Singh-led side conceded a point to the Netherlands after drawing (during the regulation time) the second match of the contest on Sunday.
India thrashed China 9-0 to stay in the hunt for top spot in the round-robin league competition of the fourth Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament in Kuantan, Malaysia on Tuesday.
The International Hockey Federation (FIH) is planning to have India and Pakistan play their home and away matches in Europe if the arch-rivals face off in the Olympic qualifying tournament for a berth at the 2020 Tokyo Games.
A 24-strong team for the men's hockey series against Japan was announced on Thursday, following a week-long preparatory camp held at the Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, that commenced on April 22.
SV Sunil's oodles of experience came in handy as his 59th minute strike enabled India to pip a gritty Wales 4-3 in their second Pool B encounter at the Commonwealth Games, in Gold Coast.
This year a whopping 74 winners were picked for the national honours, including an unprecedented five Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratnas and 27 Arjuna awardees.
Captain Manpreet Singh and goalkeeper P R Sreejesh are among a few senior India players rested for next month's Olympic hockey test event in Tokyo. Besides Manpreet and Sreejesh, defender Surender Kumar was also rested.
The list of core probables of the senior men's hockey team has been pruned down to 33 from 48 after a three-day selection trials held at the SAI Centre, Bangalore from July 25-27.
Defending champions India continued their unbeaten run as they beat South Korea 5-3 in the Pool A match to storm into the semi-finals of the men's hockey competition at the 18th Asian Games.
Indian defender Surender Kumar will not play any role in the ongoing fourth Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament after being suspended for two matches following a deliberate foul during the game against Malaysia.
In the first such incident reported in Punjab, drones were used to drop weapons and communication devices, among others, from across the border, an official said, adding that a half-burnt drone used in the operation was recovered from Tarn Taran.
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