Bram Lomans to conduct camp for drag-flickers ahead of Men's Hockey World Cup

New Delhi, Dec 12 (IANS) In their quest to excel in the upcoming FIH Odisha Hockey Men's World Cup 2023, Hockey India have 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 drag-flickers and goalkeepers camps will be part of the national coaching camp for a 33-member core probable group of Indian men's hockey players, who will report in Sports Authority of India, Bengaluru on Monday for a two-week national coaching camp as part of their final preparations for the FIH Odisha Hockey Men's World Cup 2023, scheduled to begin on January 13, 2023.

The prestigious event featuring 16 top teams will be held at state-of-the-art world-class venues in Bhubaneswar and Rourkela.

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

India, who will be vying to end the wait of over four decades to stand on the podium in the World Cup, are leaving no stone unturned in their preparations for the marquee event at home.

"We are grateful to Hockey India and SAI for organising this special drag-flick and goalkeeping camp ahead of the World Cup. This is a great opportunity to get world-class specialized coaching and it will certainly help provide the right tools and strategies for our drag-flickers and goalies ahead of the big event in January," expressed 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 the 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.

The core probable group for World Cup: Goalkeepers: Krishan Bahadur Pathak; PR Sreejesh; Suraj Karkera; Defenders: 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; Sukhjeet Singh.