Johor (Malaysia), Oct 18 (Agency) The Indian Junior Men’s Hockey Team will begin their 12th Sultan of Johor Cup campaign here on Saturday.Beginning from October 19, India will face off against hosts Malaysia, Japan, Great Britain, Australia and New Zealand and hope to make to it to Final scheduled for October 26. In Malaysia, the team will compete under the leadership of the new Head Coach PR Sreejesh, who has assigned Amir Ali as his Captain and Rohit as the Vice Captain. India will start their campaign against Japan on October 19 and then face Great Britain on October 20. Following a day off, India will play the hosts, Malaysia, on October 22 and then Australia on October 23. India will play New Zealand in the last group stage match on October 25. They wouldlike to finish in the top two teams in the pool to proceed to the last on October 26.
The Indian Junior Men’s Hockey Team got the better of Japan in their previous encounter in the Men’s Junior Asia Cup in May 2023, by registering a 3-1 victory against them. India defeatedJapan 5-1 in the 2022 Sultan of Johor Cup as well before that. “The team has been training well under the new Head Coach PR Sreejesh, and we are excited to play our first tournament with him. After losing to Germany last time, we were unable to retain our crown, but this time we are better equipped and ready to take on any team in the competition,” Captain Amir Ali said ahead of the competition. “We have been training hard over the past few days to be in the best shape ahead of the Sultan of Johor Cup. This time around, the team has several new players who are excited to demonstrate their abilities on the field. All of the players are encouraging one another to improve in preparation for a busy time for us, which includes the Men’s Junior Asia Cup Muscat 2024 in November,” Vice Captain Rohit added.