Hockey 4 Nations Tournament - Dusseldorf 2023: Indian Junior Men's Schedule And Squad

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The Indian Junior Men's Hockey Team is set to kick off their journey in the 4 Nations Tournament - Dusseldorf 2023 against Spain on Friday, August 18th. Following that, they will face Germany on August 19th and England on August 21st.

The tournament will culminate with the Final taking place on August 22nd. This tournament serves as a crucial step in preparing for the upcoming FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup 2023, which is scheduled to be held in Malaysia from December 5th to December 16th.

Prior to this competition, the Indian team completed their National Coaching Camp at SAI Centre in Bengaluru between June and August of this year.

Before entering the camp, the Indian Junior Men's Team secured qualification for the FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup 2023 by emerging victorious at the Men's Junior Asia Cup 2023 in Oman.

They triumphed over arch-rivals Pakistan with a thrilling score of 2-1 in the Final. With this win, India also established a new record by clinching their fourth title at the Men's Junior Asia Cup.

Due to an injury sustained during training camp, Uttam Singh will not be able to participate in the tournament. In his absence, Vishnukant Singh has been appointed as captain of the Indian Junior Men's Team.

Emphasizing on its significance, Vishnukant stated that "the tournament provides us with an excellent opportunity to continue our growth and gain experience by competing against some of Europe's best teams before heading into the highly important FIH Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup 2023.

"We have talented and experienced players within our squad and we aim to maintain our recent performance levels. It is crucial for us to achieve favorable results in order to boost our confidence."

The last encounter between India and Spain was during Madrid's U-21 Men's Tournament back in 2019, where Spain emerged victorious with a score of 3-1. Since 2016, these two teams have faced each other four times, with India winning three matches and Spain securing one victory.

On the other hand, the Indian Junior Men's Hockey Team last competed against Germany at the FIH Odisha Hockey Men's Junior World Cup Bhubaneswar 2021, resulting in a defeat of 2-4 for India.

In their previous four encounters since 2013, India has won thrice while Germany has secured one win.

Furthermore, this tournament marks the first meeting between the Indian Junior Men's Hockey Team and England since their triumph over England with a score of 5-3 at the Uttar Pradesh Hockey Junior World Cup Men Lucknow in 2016. This will only be their third encounter since 2013.

Head Coach CR Kumar of the Indian Junior Men's Hockey Team acknowledged that Spain, Germany, and England are formidable opponents and they have closely observed their recent performances.

However, he emphasized that their main focus will be on executing their game plans and playing to their strengths. The team has worked on areas needing improvement during the camp and intends to stick to its strategies in order to achieve positive results during the tour.

Indian Junior Men’s Hockey Team 4 Nations Tournament - Dusseldorf 2023 Schedule

• August 18: India vs Spain at 2:30 PM IST

• August 19: India vs Germany at 10:30 PM IST

• August 21: India vs England at 1:30 PM IST

Indian Junior Men's Squad For 4 Nations Tournament 2023

Goalkeepers: Mohith H S, Ranvijay Singh Yadav

Defenders: Sharda Nand Tiwari, Rohit, Amandeep Lakra, Amir Ali, Waribam Niraj Kumar Singh, Yogember Rawat

Midfielders: Poovanna C B, Vishnukant Singh, Rajinder Singh, Amandeep, Sunit Lakra, Chetan Sharma, Amit Kumar Yadav

Forwards: Araijeet Singh Hundal, Angad Bir Singh, Boby Singh Dhami (vice captain), Uttam Singh (captain), Sudeep Chirmako

Source: Hockey India Release