Rupinderpal, Varun, Manpreet to miss hockey tour to Europe

Seasoned defenders Rupinderpal Singh and Varun Kumar have been dropped from European tour of the national men’s hockey team as they are going through rehabilitation, an official familiar with the development said on Sunday.

“Kumar has an ankle problem while Singh is also unfit,” the official added.

Former skipper Manpreet Singh too will miss the tour, though due to personal reasons.

The national team of 22 players and six support staff are leaving for their first international tour after nearly 12 months as the Covid pandemic had disrupted the global and domestic competition.

The national team will play a series of matches against Germany and England during the 17-day European tour. India will play Germany on February 28 and March 2. The national team will then travel to Antwerp, Belgium, to play against England on March 6 and March 8.

India last played Australia during the Hockey Pro League matches held in Bhubaneswar in February last year.

“We are very grateful for the opportunity to go to Europe. We are looking forward to having our first competitive matches in just over 12 months. Playing against powerhouse teams like Germany and England will provide us with great competition and help immensely in our FIH Hockey Pro League and Olympic Games preparation. Playing any top 10 ranked team is always a great experience for the team,” national team coach Graham Reid had said earlier.

–IANS

nns/qma/rt

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Dear Reader,

Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. Your encouragement and constant feedback on how to improve our offering have only made our resolve and commitment to these ideals stronger. Even during these difficult times arising out of Covid-19, we continue to remain committed to keeping you informed and updated with credible news, authoritative views and incisive commentary on topical issues of relevance.

We, however, have a request.

As we battle the economic impact of the pandemic, we need your support even more, so that we can continue to offer you more quality content. Our subscription model has seen an encouraging response from many of you, who have subscribed to our online content. More subscription to our online content can only help us achieve the goals of offering you even better and more relevant content. We believe in free, fair and credible journalism. Your support through more subscriptions can help us practise the journalism to which we are committed.

Support quality journalism and subscribe to Business Standard.

Digital Editor