A 33-member Indian men’s hockey core probable group will report at Sports Authority of India, Bengaluru today for a two-week national coaching camp as part of their final preparations for the FIH Hockey Men’s World Cup 2023 which is scheduled to begin on 13th January 2023.

The tournament featuring 16 top teams will be held in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela. The hosts are vying to end a four-decade wait to stand on the podium in the World Cup.

Hockey India has called-up double Olympic champion from Netherlands Bram Lomans to work with the Indian drag flickers. Dennis Van De Pol, who was here in Bengaluru in 2019, has been invited to share his expertise in goalkeeping.

The special dragflick and goalkeeping camp will begin on December 14 and conclude on December 20. The Indian team will leave for Rourkela on December 27 for Rourkela, where they begin their campaign on January 13 against England.

“This is a great opportunity to get world class specialized coaching and it will certainly help provide the right tools and strategies for our dragflickers and goalies ahead of the big event in January,” said Indian men’s hockey team chief coach Graham Reid.

Players called up for the National Camp include Krishan Bahadur Pathak, PR Sreejesh, Suraj Karkera, Jarmanpreet Singh, Surender Kumar, Harmanpreet Singh, Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Gurinder Singh, Jugraj Singh, Mandeep Mor, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, Sanjay, Yashdeep Siwach, Dipsan Tirkey, Manpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Moirangthem Rabichandra Singh, Shamsher Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Rajkumar Pal, Sumit, Akashdeep Singh, Gurjant Singh, Mohd Raheel, Maninder Singh, S Karthi, Mandeep Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Abhishek, Dilpeet Singh and Sukhjeet Singh.

Additionally, Shilanand Lakra, Manjeet and Pawan Rajbhar who are nursing an injury will also remain in national camp for their rehab.

“This is going to be an important camp for us. There are a few critical aspects of our game that needs some improvement basis our assessment of the Australia Tour. The players were given one week’s break after returning from Adelaide and I believe they will be physically and mentally fresh when they report on Monday,” added Reid.

Core Probable Group for World Cup:

1. Krishan Bahadur Pathak

2. PR Sreejesh

3. Suraj Karkera

4. Jarmanpreet Singh

5. Surender Kumar

6. Harmanpreet Singh

7. Varun Kumar

8. Amit Rohidas

9. Gurinder Singh

10. Jugraj Singh

11. Mandeep Mor

12. Nilam Sanjeep Xess

13. Sanjay

14.Yashdeep Siwach

15. Dipsan Tirkey

16. Manpreet Singh

17. Hardik Singh

18. Vivek Sagar Prasad

19. Moirangthem Rabichandra Singh

20. Shamsher Singh

21. Nilakanta Sharma

22. Rajkumar Pal

23. Sumit

24. Akashdeep Singh

25. Gurjant Singh

26. Mohd. Raheel

27. Maninder Singh

28. S Karthi

29. Mandeep Singh

30. Lalit Kumar Upadhyay

31. Abhishek

32. Dilpreet Singh

33. Sukhjeet Singh.