QNET has been named the Title Sponsor of the 4th Asian Men’s Champions Trophy by the Malaysian Hockey Confederation (MHC). The prestigious hockey tournament, sanctioned by the Asian Hockey Federation, will be held from 20-30 October 2016 in Kuantan, Malaysia, and will officially be called QNET Asian Champions Trophy 2016.
The Men’s Asian Champions Trophy brings together six of the best teams from the region. Watch India, Malaysia, Pakistan, China, Korea and Japan battle it out on the field to secure the title less than a year ahead of the 2017 Asia Cup, the continental championship which doubles as a World Cup Qualifier.
Over the eleven days of the event, the teams will first play each other in a round robin, followed by semi-finals and placement matches. The home team, Malayasia, play the defending champions, Pakistan, followed by India playing Japan on Opening Day, 20th October 2016.
India
The Indian Hockey Team is all set to chase the winning title this month at the QNET Asian Champions Trophy, 2016. The 18-member squad will be led by goalkeeper P.R Sreejesh while 24-year-old midfielder Manpreet Singh will be his deputy for the tournament.
The Indian Captain and goalkeeper P.R Sreejesh has emphasised on playing with caution. “We may be the top ranked team in Asia right now but no team can be taken lightly. The defending Champions (Pakistan) are known to spring a surprise and Korea too will be a team to watch out for as they have been playing good quality hockey lately”.
Squad:
Goalkeepers
1. P.R Sreejesh (Captain)
2. Akash Chikte
Defenders
3. Rupinder Pal Singh
4. Pardeep Mor
5. Jasjit Singh Kular
6. Birendra Lakra
7. Kothajit Singh
8. Surender Kumar
Midfielders
9. Chinglensana Singh Kangujam
10. Manpreet Singh (Vice Captain)
11. Sardar Singh
12. S.K Uthappa
13. Devindar Walmiki
Forwards
14. Talwinder Singh
15. S.V Sunil
16. Lalit Kumar Upadhyay
17. Nikkin Thimmaiah
18. Affan Yousuf
“The Asian Champions Trophy is an important tournament for us and going by the world rankings, India will go in as favourites to win the title. The team has been upbeat since their return to the camp after the Olympic Games and are eager to start the season on a winning note,” expressed Roelant Oltmans, Chief Coach India Men Hockey Team and Director High Performance.
