VR Raghunath, Danish Mujtaba left out of Hockey's India probables list

New Delhi: It is time for change in Indian hockey. The last four years have seen the national side make rapid development and the roadmap for the next Olympic cycle will see them aim for “consistency, better results and more medals”.

There were a number of shake-ups and new additions as Hockey India on Friday named a 33-strong core group that will begin their journey with the Azlan Shah in April followed by the World League semi-final in London.

While the Junior World Cup stars, as expected, have been rewarded for their gold medal winning feat.

11 of them have made the cut — the message was clear for veterans V. R. Raghunath, Danish Mujtaba and Dharamvir Singh, who were left out as it is seen.

Core group
Goalkeepers: Akash Chikte, Sreejesh P.R., Vikas Dahiya, Suraj Karkera; Defenders: Dipsan Tirkey, Pardeep Mor, Birendra Lakra, Kothajit Singh, Surender Kumar, Rupinderpal Singh, Harmanpreet Singh, Jasjit Singh Kular, Gurinder Singh, Amit Rohidas; Midfielders: Chinglensana Singh, S.K. Uthappa, Sumit, Satbir Singh, Sardar Singh, Manpreet Singh, Harjeet Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Manpreet, Simranjeet Singh; Forwards: Ramandeep Singh, S.V. Sunil, Talwinder Singh, Mandeep Singh, Affan Yousuf, Nikkin Thimmaiah, Gurjant Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Lalit Upadhyay