Harmanpreet Singh-Led Indian Hockey Team Leaves for Asian Games 2026 Title Defence
New Delhi, Sep 2026 : The Indian men’s hockey team departed for Japan on Tuesday evening with the aim of defending its Asian Games title and securing a direct qualification berth for the LA 2028 Olympic Games. The Asian Games 2026 will be held in Aichi-Nagoya from September 19 to October 4, with the hockey competition scheduled in Kakamigahara, around 35 km from Nagoya.
The Indian team, led by captain Harmanpreet Singh, will enter the continental competition determined to bounce back from its disappointing eighth-place finish at the FIH Hockey World Cup 2026 in the Netherlands and Belgium last month.
India showed flashes of quality during the World Cup but struggled to maintain consistency in crucial moments. Several closely contested matches slipped away, ultimately leaving the team outside the medal positions. The players will now look to learn from those setbacks and produce a more disciplined and consistent performance in Japan.
The defending Asian Games champions have established themselves as a dominant force in continental hockey over the past decade. India won the gold medal at the Hangzhou Asian Games in 2023 and also enjoyed success at the Asia Cup. Another gold medal in Aichi-Nagoya would not only strengthen India's position in Asian hockey but also secure direct qualification for the 2028 Olympic Games.
Captain Harmanpreet Singh will be central to India's campaign, both as a leader and as one of the team's key penalty-corner specialists. He has urged his teammates to avoid looking too far ahead and concentrate on each match individually.
“There are no easy games because you want to play well consistently throughout the competition and not let up,” Harmanpreet said, stressing the importance of improving with every match and reaching peak form during the knockout stages.
Chief coach Craig Fulton will also expect his players to remain focused on executing their plans rather than being distracted by the pressure surrounding Olympic qualification.
India have been placed in Pool A alongside hosts Japan, South Korea, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Indonesia. The defending champions will begin their campaign against Indonesia on September 20 before facing Sri Lanka, South Korea, Japan and Bangladesh in the remaining pool matches. Their group-stage campaign will conclude against Bangladesh on September 28.
The Indian squad features a blend of experienced campaigners and promising players, with Harmanpreet Singh, Jarmanpreet Singh, Surender Kumar, Amit Rohidas, Hardik Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Manpreet Singh, Abhishek, Sukhjeet Singh, Lalit Kumar Upadhyay, Shilanand Lakra, Rajkumar Pal, Mandeep Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Jugraj Singh, Sanjay, Nilakanta Sharma, Krishan Bahadur Pathak, Suraj Karkera, Moritz Ludwig, Uttam Singh and Araijeet Singh Hundal among the players expected to play important roles.
The semifinals are scheduled for October 1, while the gold-medal match will be played on October 3. With Olympic qualification at stake, India will aim to convert its continental dominance into another gold medal and return home as back-to-back Asian Games champions.
