Team’s new chief coach Craig Fulton expressed confidence in the squad picked for the tournament to be played at the Major Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium, adding that playing in front of home fans adds to the excitement.
“Everyone wants the team to do well. So we want to win. There are a lot of expectations from the team,” Fulton told ANI.
(Photo: Hockey India)
“It’s always awesome to play a home tournament. (But) The time between the two tournaments isn’t ideal; it’s basically three days, but a lot of preparation has gone into it…We’re really happy to be here to play and look forward to the first game,” he added.
Serving as the preparatory tournament for the big-ticket Asian Games in September-October, India will take on South Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, Japan and China in the round-robin stage.
India open their campaign against China on August 3, and the much-awaited India vs Pakistan match is scheduled for August 9.
The Indian squad is led by drag-flicker and defender Harmanpreet Singh, with midfielder Hardik Singh as his deputy.
(With ANI inputs)
