Drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh out of Asia Cup, Birender Lakra named captain
Bad news for Indian hockey fans. Veteran drag-flicker Rupinder Pal Singh has been ruled out of the Asia Cup starting May 23 in Jakarta due to injury. Rupinder was made the captain of the 20-man team, but he suffered an injury during the training session. In such a situation, he had to withdraw from the Asia Cup. He will be replaced by defender Neelam Sanjeev Jess for the tournament. Also Read – Asia Cup 2022: Rupinder Pal Singh, who has returned from retirement, will captain India in the Asia Cup.
Experienced defender Birender Lakra will replace Rupinder as the captain, while forward SV Sunil will be the vice-captain of the team. He said, “It is unfortunate that Rupinder got injured during the training session and he was ruled out of the Asia Cup. Both Birender and Sunil are highly experienced and have been part of the leadership group for many years.” Also Read – Asia Cup 2022 tournament to be played in Sri Lanka from 27 August to 11 September
Coach BJ Cariappa said, “While we will miss Rupinder, we have a lot of options available in the team. We have a very talented group of players and are looking forward to making use of this opportunity.” Also Read – Sri Lanka set to host Asia Cup this year; Jay Shah will attend the meeting to be held in Colombo
Indian team:
- Goalkeepers: Pankaj Kumar Rajak and Suraj Karkera.
- Defenders: Yashdeep Siwach, Abhishek Lakra, Birender Lakra (Captain), Manjeet and Deepsan Tirkey.
- Midfielders: Vishnukant Singh, Raj Kumar Pal, Mariswaren Sakthivel, Shesh Gowda BM and Simranjit Singh.
- Forwards: Pawan Rajbhar, Bharan Sudev, SV Sunil (Vice-captain), Uttam Singh, S. Karthi and Neelam Sanjeev Jess.
