Hockey striker Gurjant wants to get a chance to count at the Tokyo Olympics

Bengaluru, July 6 (PTI) Stuck in the 2018 Commonwealth and Asia Games, junior World Cup hockey player Gurjant Singh can’t wait to get on the field for the Tokyo Olympics as he tries to build his career after falling from a collapse. form and injuries.

Punjab Amritsar’s 26-year-old striker has been selected for a 16-member Indian men’s hockey team to take part in the games from July 23 to August 8.

“I’ve forgotten about the Asian Games and the World Cup because of injuries. I had to sit down and watch the team from home, and it was really painful. But I hope I get this chance to count in Tokyo, and we’re all ready for the challenge,” Gurjant said.

Gurjant’s first appearance on the parent team in 2017 against Belgium, winner of the 2016 Indian Junior World Championships. Later that year, he also played in the Hero Asia Cup in Dhaka, which India won.

However, the collapse of the form saw that he missed not only the 2018 Commonwealth Games but the Asian Games. He was also eliminated from the FIH Men’s World Cup team due to injury.

“Although I was selected as the trophy for the Asian Champions in Muscat, where I scored four goals, it wasn’t until 2020 that I started to prove my share of the team.

“The goal I found against the Netherlands in the FIH Hockey Pro League was for India’s fastest goal, and fans also voted it the second best FIH Hockey Pro League goal in 2020,” Gurjant said.

Known as a big match player, Gurjant scored in the semi-finals and finals on his way to the FIH Men’s World Championships in 2016 and beyond. He considers it the greatest achievement of his career.

“I will never forget December 18, 2016. That day we won the Junior World Championships, and so far it has been the biggest achievement of my career. After this big win, people started to notice me,” he said.

Indian players were generally not limited to their national camp in Bengaluru last year, and the striker said he spent this time practicing his defensive technique hardly at all because of the tours.

“One of the key areas head coach Graham Reid was waiting for me to work on was my defense. He insists that a good defense starts with the attackers and I really paid a lot of attention to improving my ball-free skills over the past year.” PTI SSC PM PM

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Disclaimer: – This story has not been edited by Outlook staff and has been automatically created from news agency feeds. Source: PTI

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