October 20, 2016 by admin

ACT hockey: India favourites to reclaim title

Kuantan (Malaysia), The Indian men’s hockey team starts as the overwhelming favourite to reclaim the Asian Champions Trophy (ACT) title as it starts its campaign against Japan here tomorrow. Winners of the inaugural edition five years ago, India have since been indifferent in fielding their best squad for this competition, which suffered from a lack of enthusiasm among the continent’s hockey elite.
After two editions of the annual event were not conducted, in 2014 and 2015, the six-nation tournament got a boost from the international federation’s (FIH) decision to include it in the qualification system for future Olympics and World Cups. Despite injuries to a few key players, reigning Asian Games champions India still go into the tournament as favourites. Twice defending champions Pakistan and South Korea will be eager to pull off a surprise against India. “Our quarterfinal ouster in the Olympics was a disappointment, but it has instilled a belief in the players that they can match the best in the world,” said India coach Roelant Oltmans.