3 big names from 2018 World Cup missing from India's squad for FIH World Cup 2023

The Men’s hockey world cup 2023 is around the corner and the tournament will kick off on January 13. India are the host of the tournament and one has to agree that the management have sent a strong contingent for the upcoming multinational tournament, although Pakistan have a rich history, with 4 titles to their name. 

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While the Indian team is pretty strong in striking, and defending and also have a great goalkeeper, PR Sreejesh. However, there were players who were missing from the 2018 squad and we decided to handpick three players from the lot, who are not a part of the current edition of the hockey world cup. 

Here are the three players: 

3) Dilpreet Singh

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Dilpreet Singh (Image Source: Twitter)

Dilpreet Singh was the youngest of the whole team during the previous edition of the multinational tournament and one has to agree that the team might miss the striker for the upcoming World Cup. Known for his pace, Dilpreet could have made a significant difference in crunch situations and much to the dolefulness of the player, he was left out. 

However, he is not completely out of the radar as he is one of the standbys, meaning that the 23-year-old still has a fair chance to make an appearance donning the blue jersey in the approaching world cup. To speak of his records, out of the 79 appearances that he has made for India so far, the striker has scored 29 goals, which is quite impressive.

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2) Simranjeet Singh

Simranjeet Singh (Image Source: Twitter)

Simranjeet Singh, often known for his Tokyo Olympics heroics, was left out of the squad for the approaching multinational tournament, much to the stupefaction of the Indian fans. The midfielder was one of the takeaways for team India during the Tokyo Olympics and this comes on the back of his winning goal against Germany in the Bronze medal match. 

He was well a part of India’s squad in the 2018 World Cup and is now left out, advising the midfielder to get fitter. As far as his records are concerned, the 26-year-old has represented India in 52 games and has gathered 16 goals to his name so far and it remains to be seen if his absence would affect the Indian team’s campaign in the approaching edition. 

1) Kothajit Singh Khadangbam

Kothajit Singh Khadangbam (Image Source: Twitter)

India have a pretty strong defenders list this time around and the only name that was missing from the squad was the name of Kothajit Singh Khadangbam, known for his strategic techniques and also for his timely goal during the silver match of the 2014 Asian games against Pakistan. 

The defender was left out of the Indian team for the upcoming multinational tournament and many opined that his presence would have made a significant difference. However, the team management are banking on youngsters and the 30-year-old might have been dropped for his age.