FIH Pro League provides great opportunity to play against top teams, says Manpreet Singh
Hockey India
Manpreet Singh has underlined the fact that playing in the FIH Pro League will be beneficial for the Indian players as it will give an opportunity to play against the top teams in the world. The Indian men's team will play its first Pro League game against The Netherlands on 18 January 2020.
India will take on The Netherlands in their opening match on 18 January 2019 in India. The weekend matches on 18 and 19 January against the Dutch team will be followed by matches against the World Champions Belgium on 8 and 9 February 2020. The home matches will also see India play Australia on 22 and 23 February before the Indian team leaves for away games in Germany as well as Great Britain on 25 and 26 April 2020 and 2 and 3 May 2020 respectively.
India will return to play on home soil on 23 and 24 May 2020 against New Zealand following which the team will leave for Argentina to play matches on 5 and 6 June 2020. The Indian team will play the last leg of the Pro League round robin matches in Spain on 13 and 14 June 2020. Â
"We are really excited to begin our first FIH Pro League campaign on home soil in January. The league provides a great opportunity to play against top teams in the world and we expect all the matches to be challenging. I am sure playing continuous top-level matches will be beneficial in the all-important Olympic year and this could also mean good match exposure for all players in the core group," stated Manpreet Singh on the sidelines of the on-going National Coaching Camp in SAI, Bengaluru. Â
India will play a total of eight home games with six matches in January and February and two matches in May. Manpreet believes this will provide ample opportunity for Indian fans to catch their favourite players in action against the best hockey-playing nations in the world.Â
"With India playing the home leg against top teams like the Netherlands, Belgium and Australia, I am sure hockey fans in India will get to watch the very best of hockey. India has always enjoyed playing these teams on home soil and what better way to start our campaign than here at home," stated Manpreet.Â
"We hope the matches will recreate an electrifying atmosphere similar to World Cup in Bhubaneswar and the visiting teams too can enjoy playing here," he further added. Â
Meanwhile, Indian Men's Team Chief Coach Graham Reid emphasised on the importance of regular competition against top teams ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. He said, "We are very excited about the prospects of playing in the Pro League next year. Having experienced it first-hand, I know how important it is to have regular competition. To play against the best teams in the world and test the depth of this talented young squad will be ideal preparation for the Tokyo Olympics should we qualify in November."Â
