"Indian team has no competition here": Bhola Nath Singh ahead of Hockey Men's Asia Cup 2025

Rajgir (Bihar) [India], August 29 (ANI): Ahead of the start of the Men's Asia Cup 2025 here on Friday, Hockey India Secretary General Bhola Nath Singh said that he is very confident that Team India will qualify for the Hockey World Cup as there is no competition for the team in the upcoming event.

India will kickstart its Asia Cup hockey campaign against China on August 29. The final will be played on September 7. The Men in Blue are a prolific presence in the tournament, having won it three times in 2003, 2007, and 2017, and finishing as runners-up five times. They are featured in Pool A alongside Japan, China and Kazakhstan.

Expressing his views on India's chances to lift the title, Bhola Nath Singh told ANI, "The way the facilities are being given by the Central government, Hockey India, the Indian team has no competition in Asia, and after winning the trophy, we will qualify for the World Cup."

The tournament, a quadrennial event that began in 1982, also serves as a qualification event for the 2026 FIH Men's Hockey World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the Netherlands and Belgium.

The winners of the Asia Cup will earn a direct berth to the World Cup, while the teams finishing from second to sixth will advance to the FIH World Cup Qualifiers, scheduled to be held in February-March 2026.

Harmanpreet will captain an 18-member Indian men's hockey team in Rajgir. The experienced squad features stalwarts such as Manpreet Singh, Hardik Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Mandeep Singh, and Amit Rohidas.

A total of eight teams will contest for the title and have been divided into two groups of four. After single-headed round-robin matches, the top two from each pool will qualify for the Super 4s, with the top two from that stage contesting the final on September 7.

Pool A: India, Japan, China, Kazakhstan.

Pool B: South Korea, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Chinese Taipei. (ANI)

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