Picture Credit: Twitter
The Harmanpreet Singh-led side has suffered a major blow as star player Hardik Singh now remains doubtful for India’s final Group stage match which will be played at Kalinga Stadium on January 19, 2023. The attacking midfielder, who scored the second goal for the Indian team in the Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023 was helped off the field after suffering a hamstring injury in the final minutes on Sunday (January 15).
While India won their first Pool D match over Spain, they finished the second game in a goalless draw against England. According to the FIH rules, Hardik Singh won’t be allowed to return to Playing XI even if he recovers from injury. If reports are to be believed, midfielder Rajkumar Pal, who was named as one of the two reserves by Hockey India for World Cup 2023 will replace the star player.
India currently stands at second place in the Pool D points table behind England. Wales currently sits at the fourth place after two defeats in the Men’s Hockey World Cup.
Team India’s squad for Men’s Hockey World Cup 2023:
PR Sreejesh, Krishna Pathak, Surender Kumar, Harmanpreet Singh (Captain), Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas (Vice Captain), Nilam Sanjeep Xess, Manpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Shamsher Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Akashdeep Singh, Mandeep Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, Rajkumar Pal, Jugraj Singh
