Defending champions India leave for Hockey Asia Cup 2022 is news of the day. So read out the complete details down below with us!
Hockey Asia Cup 2022 | Defending champions India leave
The Indian men’s hockey team, led by Olympic bronze medalist Birendra Lakra, left on Friday for Jakarta to defend their Asia Cup title. In Pool A, India will compete against Pakistan, Japan, and the host nation of Indonesia, while Pool B will feature Malaysia, Korea, Oman, and Bangladesh. The Indian campaign against Pakistan will begin on Monday.
The previous tournament was won by India, which defeated Malaysia in the final in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2017.
Official Statements
“The team is definitely excited. The Asia Cup is a very prestigious tournament and we will have quite a few players who will be experiencing this tournament for the first time so naturally the mood is quite upbeat in the team,” Birendra said in a Hockey India release.
“Our camp in SAI Bengaluru was quite tough and very fruitful. While we got to know more about each player’s strengths, and improved our on-field communication, Sardar (Coach) was also very particular about our fitness.”
Lakra said, “We just want to take it one match at a time, definitely there will be a lot of tense nerves ahead of the first match against Pakistan but we will focus on our own game and get on from there.”
