India skipper Harmanpreet Singh and former captain Manpreet Singh made a comeback into the India squad on Wednesday for the European leg of the FIH Pro League.
The 24-member squad will play four matches each in Rotterdam (two each against holders, world No.1 and Olympic champions Netherlands and world champions Germany) and London (two each against England and Pakistan) in June.
Harmanpreet, who last played in the Rourkela leg of the nine-team elite competition, had taken a break and did not travel to Hobart for India’s matches against hosts Australia and Spain due to the birth of his second child.
The ace drag-flicker returns for the last eight matches before India prepare for the two major events of the season — World Cup in August and Asian Games in September-October.
Manpreet too makes a return and will be playing his first match since December 2025. Although Hockey India (HI) and the 33-year-old have maintained that he was rested for the Rourkela and Hobart legs, it is reportedly a disciplinary action.
The seasoned midfielder was dropped as punishment after an incident that took place on the tour of South Africa in December.
Manpreet, with 411 international caps, is one game shy of achieving the record for most India games, a mark held by former India skipper and current HI president Dilip Tirkey. The two-time Olympic bronze medallist is now set to surpass Tirkey’s record.
The squad also sees the return of midfielder Nilakanta Sharma, forwards Selvam Karthi, Sukhjeet Singh and Dilpreet Singh. Dilpreet was also dropped earlier this year on disciplinary grounds.
Those omitted include midfielder Manmeet Singh and forward Angad Bir Singh. Defender Poovanna Chandura Boby, midfielder Vishnu Kant Singh, and forwards Araijeet Singh Hundal and Maninder Singh have been moved from the main squad to the standby list.
India’s main goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathak, who was dropped earlier and is yet to play this year, is one of the five standby players. In his place MH Shashikumar and Suraj Karkera are the goalkeepers chosen.
The India squad travels to Brussels, where they will stay from June 7 to 9 for training and to play a friendly. They will be in Rotterdam from June 10 for the matches against Germany and Netherlands scheduled from June 14 to 21. India will then fly to London to play Pakistan and England from June 23 to 28.
“Training has been going really well and the squad is in great shape. The FIH Pro League matches in Holland and England are exactly what we need – tough tests against world-class opposition that will tell us exactly where we stand in our World Cup preparations. We are looking forward to the challenge,” chief coach Craig Fulton said.
India squad:
Goalkeepers: MH Shashikumar, Suraj Karkera
Defenders: Harmanpreet Singh (capt), Amit Rohidas, Sumit, Sanjay, Yashdeep Siwach, Amandeep Lakra, Jarmanpreet Singh, Jugraj Singh
Midfielders: Hardik Singh, Manpreet Singh, Rajinder Singh, Raj Kumar Pal, Nilakanta Sharma, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Rabichandra Singh Moirangthem
Forwards: Mandeep Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Abhishek, Aditya Arjun Lalage, Dilpreet Singh, Shilanand Lakra, Selvam Karthi
