Indian Junior Hockey Team Skipper, Gurjinder Singh, not to contest Sultan of Johor Cup
Indian junior hockey team suffered a setback before even starting the action in the upcoming invitational Sultan of Johor Cup, set to commence on November 5, at the Taman Daya Hockey Stadium, in Malaysia.
Indian Junior Hockey Team skipper and veteran short corner master, Gurjinder Singh, will not be part of the team in the tournament, owing to injuries. It was a big shock for the team as it was eyeing the title of the tournament.
Gurjinder Singh is suffering from an ankle injury after he collided with a teammate during a practice match. Harjeet Singh has replaced Gurjinder Singh.
The invitational tournament is featuring squads from Australia, South Korea, New Zealand, Pakistan and the host, Malaysia.
Indian Junior Team’s Coach, Mukesh Kumar, is severely feeling the absence of the seasoned youngster.
However, he is not disappointed, saying that his team still has the capability to knockdown the hockey giants in the round-robin tournament.
The Indian Coach is anticipating positive results from in the event. He underscored, “This tournament will lay the foundation of our Junior World Cup squad. It is the first international for the players and they want to do well to keep their place in the
squad. We have a talented team and have high hopes of making the final”.
In the meantime, the Sultan of Johor Cup will also be a challenging task for Mukesh Kumar, who was the shining star of India in his era.
With 307 international caps to his credit, Mukesh partook in three back to back Olympic Games. He lit the lamp 80 times in his decade long career.
He contested the Malaysian Hockey League as a player, back in 1995-96. He represented Yayasan Negeri Sembilan (YNS), earning a victorious medal in the tournament.
Sultan of Johor Cup is his first major assignment as a coach that will decide his fate for future tasks.
He added, “This is the first time I am acting as a Chief Coach. It is truly a learning experience for me. But I have an enthusiastic bunch of players who are determined to do well and that helps make things easier”.
He was of the opinion that the tournament will not be an easy task as the competing countries have an impressive history in the sport. Moreover, with Gurjinder Singh injured, the challenge awaiting India is even bigger now.