Junior champs India to headline Sultan of Johor Cup

KUALA LUMPUR: Junior World Cup champions India are all set to parade a new set of players for their 2020 Olympic challenge.

The new players will see action for the first time at the 7th edition of the Sultan of Johor Cup in Johor Baru next month.

India are confident that the new players will put up a good showing.

Newly-appointed India coach Jude Felix is also relishing the chance to test his players against some of the best junior teams in the world.

Besides India, the other teams competing in the Sultan of Johor Cup, to be held at the Taman Daya Stadium in Johor Baru from Oct 22-29, are defending champions Australia, Britain, Japan, the United States and Malaysia.

India’s team are undergoing their final phase of training in Lucknow and Jude is impressed with the talent at his disposal.

“None of them have played in the Johor tournament before and there is a healthy competition to make the final squad,” said Jude in a tele- phone interview.

“There are some very strong teams competing. I hope my players will be able to match them. We have always had a good outing in Johor and we hope to maintain that.”

Jude used to play in Malaysia, having assisted Yayasan Negri Sembilan to the overall title in the Malaysia Hockey League in 1994.

The former India captain also had a stint as assistant coach of Malaysia’s senior team at the Rio Olympics.

He also coached in Singapore for a few years before starting his own hockey academy in India.

“I have pleasant memories of playing in Malaysia, which has a special place in my heart. I attended one edition of the Sultan of Johor Cup as a spectator – when India were coached by Mukesh Kumar. Overall, the tournament has benefitted the junior teams immensely,” he said, adding that the tournament would be useful for his players to gain experience.

“This is the start of a new journey for us. The long-term target will be to defend the Junior World Cup title in three years’ time.”