Change of phase: opportunity knocks for India’s young hockey talent

Notwithstanding the absence of hockey in the upcoming Glasgow Commonwealth Games programme, 2026, studded with the World Cup and the Asian Games, presents a packed calendar to the Indian men’s hockey team.

The challenge extends beyond the current year: several experienced players, who were a part of the bronze-winning Paris 2024 team, may not be at peak form and fitness during Los Angeles 2028.

Araijeet Singh Hundal.
| Photo Credit:
BISWARANJAN ROUT

Infusion of youth

Such a situation warrants the infusion of younger talent into the side so that they can get into the groove in time to perform the elite India duty well. Considering that, 2026 will serve as the base year during which head coach Craig Fulton can experiment and trigger a transition before entering serious preparatory mode a year before the 2028 Olympics.

With the twin challenges of facing a busy calendar and effecting a smooth change, Fulton trained his eyes on the recently concluded Hockey India League (HIL) in Chennai, Ranchi and Bhubaneswar to spot as many up-and-coming players as he could.

The effort was reflected in the Indian squad of 33 core probables for the home leg of the FIH Pro League scheduled in Rourkela from February 10. Several younger players, who either have not made their debut or have played only a few top-level matches, found their places.

Looking forward to rotating young and experienced players as he builds the team for LA28, Fulton offered his views on the youngsters who caught his attention in the HIL.

“Arshdeep [Singh]’s coming good. Hundels [Araijeet Singh Hundal], post his injury from under-21s, is coming back to some kind of form, which is nice. You have got a lot of guys playing smaller roles within a big team, but they’re still doing their role well,” said Fulton.

Prince Deep Singh.
| Photo Credit:
R. RAGU

“I also like [Anmol] Ekka. He has come good. In this tournament, he has really shown he can fill a role. And [Amandeep] Lakra as well. He was playing behind [Gonzalo] Peillat last season in terms of flicking. Now he has got the full responsibility to flick. He has done a good job and he has put it on target. They’ve got rebounds, he has scored goals.”

Hyderabad Toofans’ 21-year-old Amritsar boy Arshdeep, a member of the bronze-winning Indian team at the Junior World Cup in Tamil Nadu, has the skill-set typically found in crafty Indian and Pakistani players of yesteryear. He is a sharp operator inside the circle. “Give him some space, he will take advantage of that. He uses the backhand well and is quick. You can’t plan for such a player,” said former India coach Harendra Singh, who guided Ranchi Royals to the HIL final.

Royals forward Hundal, a strapping 22-year-old, has donned India colours. Another player from Amritsar district, he recovered from a shoulder injury, which prevented him from playing in the Junior World Cup last year, to make his mark with spectacular goals off powerful shots. He is also known for his drag-flick skills.

Two youngsters from Sundargarh’s tribal belt sparkled as well.

Twenty-year-old defender Ekka, a product of the Bhubaneswar-based Odisha Naval Tata Hockey High Performance Centre, caught everyone’s attention in the HIL. His composed, proactive performance gave the Royals backline assurance.

“Anmol is a classic defender with one-on-one tackling skills. He gelled well with the European players and posed a threat to the foreign [forwards]. But his drag-flick is underused. He is good at distribution and has an excellent aerial ball. Like Harmanpreet, he looks cool while defending,” said Harendra.

Great asset

Lakra, an effortless drag-flicker, proved to be a great asset for Toofans. Having spent time in Peillat’s shadow in the HIL’s previous edition, he got a bigger role this time, as the German withdrew due to an injury. He grabbed the opportunity. With nine goals, the uncapped Indian was fourth on the list of leading goal-scorers, featuring several overseas stars. A focused and cool defender, the 23-year-old was rightly named the ‘Player of the tournament’.

Toofans coach Pasha Gademan was delighted with Lakra’s success. “He knows really well what he can do. We worked on his technique in the beginning a little bit. Maybe he benefited from it. After a while, he was very conscious about it, and was calm. He knew what he wanted to do.

“The ball comes very low on the stick with him. A lot of decisions come from collaboration. But also many times, he made the decision of where to flick it right.”

Gademan also underlined Lakra’s role as a defender. “Last year, Amandeep got three to four minutes per quarter to play. This year, we just played him for 60 minutes and he got his performance right.”

Harendra added, “Amandeep thrived because of his coach’s trust, executed the plans well. He shoots well between the goalkeeper and the post-man, and it is difficult to stop.”

Twenty-one-year-old Manipuri defender Talem Priyobrata Singh, who was chosen the ‘Up-and-coming player of the tournament’, made an impression with his fearless and level-headed performance.

Although Arshdeep, Ekka and Talem narrowly missed the cut for the 33 core probables, they are future prospects Fulton will be closely monitoring.

Among those included were linkmen Rajinder Singh, Rabichandra Singh Moirangthem and Manmeet Singh and forwards Angad Bir Singh, Aditya Lalage and Maninder Singh, all of whom made their presence felt at the HIL.

In the post-P.R. Sreejesh era, with India’s first choice custodian Krishan Pathak ‘rested’ for the FIH Pro League, Princedeep Singh, who was adjudged ‘Goalkeeper of the tournament’, and H.S. Mohith shone at the HIL to make it to the National camp.

While all the bright boys are unlikely to make it to the Indian side, they will get their shot in due course. Since Fulton lays importance on both the World Cup (August 14-30), a quadrennial showpiece event, and the Asian Games (September 19-October 4), a qualifying competition for LA28, he is not in favour of fielding two different teams in these elite competitions.

But the head coach does not mind rotating the experienced and the youth to keep a big bunch of players ready for any eventuality. He may give some of the newer faces exposure in events of lesser importance.

‘Crazy’ schedule

“We have an India-A squad that’s functioning. A lot of the under-21 players would go into that. Then you have a tour to New Zealand and the Asian Champions Trophy [ACT] towards the end [of the year]. It’s crazy to have the World Cup, the Asian Games, the ACT all [within a short period],” said Fulton.

Nevertheless, a challenging schedule may prove a blessing in disguise, as it will provide the promising lot plenty of opportunities to rise to the occasion during a crucial changeover phase in the run-up to the 2028 Olympics.