At the pre-match press conference, Indian men's hockey team coach Craig Fulton on Tuesday said he has got down to building a new core group of players keeping in mind the 2026 World Cup and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
The two-Test series against world champions and Olympic silver medallists Germany, starting at Major Dhyan Chand National Stadium, New Delhi on Wednesday, is a step in that direction.
Fulton has opted for a mix of youth and experience against Germany, handing debuts to young midfielder Rajinder Singh and striker Aditya Arjun Lagale besides calling back players such as Mandeep Singh and Dilpreet Singh.
"If you look at it from now to the World Cup and now to LA (Los Angeles), we are just trying to open up the selection to pick a new core group that will take us from now to the World Cup and from World Cup to LA," Fulton said.
"So you are never out of the system in that sense. Now it's opened up again and now we are giving guys opportunities,” he added.
Fulton rejected observations that hockey Test series have become irrelevant, saying any opportunity to play a quality side is always beneficial.
"It is always important to play Test matches, it is the test of where you are. It will be good for us, we have Rajinder and Aditya -- two debutants -- and we also want to see some of the other players who have come back,” Fulton continued.
"Varun (Kumar) and Dilpreet (Singh) are in good form at the moment. Unfortunately, Jugraj (Singh) got injured last week in training," he said.
"Is it irrelevant? I think that's not really the point. I think it's an opportunity to test ourselves against the number two side in the world. We hope we can get two good results on home soil,” said Fulton.
International hockey is returning to the national capital after 10 years, and Fulton and India skipper Harmanpreet Singh, who will be playing his first match here, are excited about it.
The last time an international match took place here was the 2014 World League Final.
"It's nice to be back. I was here to attend a function with Mr. Modi (PM Narendra Modi) after the Asian Games, but now, to play a Test match against Germany, it has come full circle," Fulton added.
Harmanpreet added: "I am really excited to play my first match here because our junior camp started from here in 2013, and after that, I am getting an opportunity to play here.”
Harmanpreet continued, "To play here after almost 11 years... an international match is happening here, we are really excited. Our mindset remains the same in every match, to give our best and it will be the same."
Defender and drag-flicker Varun Kumar is returning to the squad after a sabbatical brought about by allegations of sexual harassment against him by a junior volleyball player. His name has since been cleared in the matter.
"It was tough times for him (Varun). But he is very strong and the entire team is with him and we hope the way he performed earlier he will continue to perform with the same intensity and mindset," Harmanpreet said.
Coach Fulton said it won't be easy to tame the Germans, even though they will be fielding a young team.
"From the point of view of an opposition, Germany poses a lot of threats, they are very good tactically, they are good in man-to-man marking. So our strategy will have to adapt. You know you can play one way for 10 minutes and then a totally different way. They are a good team, a smart team and we like playing Germany," Fulton said.
Harmanpreet agreed with the coach's assessment.
"Intensity will be the same but I think what is important is to learn from every match, whether you win or lose. Every team follows 2 to 3 structures and our focus will be on that," the skipper said.
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