Indian men’s hockey has rarely faced a selection call as consequential as the one that emerged in January 2026, when Hockey India announced its 33-member core probable group for the FIH Pro League camp in Rourkela and left out Manpreet Singh.
The omission of a two-time Olympic medallist, former captain and the most capped active player in Indian history is not simply a squad decision. It represents a profound shift in how Indian hockey is being governed, managed and future-proofed.
Manpreet has been the defining constant of Indian hockey’s modern era. From the painful 2016 Olympic exit to back-to-back bronze medals at Tokyo 2020 and Paris 2024, his presence in midfield has symbolised stability, leadership and tactical continuity. Yet, just months before India enters a season that includes both the FIH World Cup and the Asian Games the latter being the direct qualification route to LA 2028 he has been abruptly pushed outside the frame.
A clash of philosophies
At the heart of this moment lies a philosophical conflict between the coaching staff and the federation’s longer-term strategic planners. Head coach Craig Fulton’s “Defend to Win” system is built on structural discipline and transitional control, roles that Manpreet has executed better than any Indian midfielder for over a decade. Fulton himself has described Manpreet as “aloo” a player who can blend into any tactical shape, whether dropping deep to protect the defence or stepping higher to control tempo.
Yet Hockey India appears determined to accelerate the generational transition toward the LA 2028 Olympic cycle. Younger, faster legs are being prioritised even at the cost of institutional memory. This tension has quietly escalated into what insiders describe as a tug-of-war between continuity and renewal.
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What makes the timing more sensitive is that Manpreet sits on 411 international caps just one shy of Dilip Tirkey’s long-standing national record. Had he been selected for the Rourkela leg of the Pro League, he would likely have surpassed it. Instead, he remains stuck on the brink, fuelling uncomfortable speculation about whether legacy management has crept into sporting decisions.
If this was a performance-based call, the numbers don’t support it. At 33, Manpreet is arguably fitter than at any point in his career. Over the past four months he has dropped nearly seven kilograms to improve agility and speed. In internal testing, he consistently finishes among the top three in Yo-Yo endurance tests and has recorded elite scores in Yo-Yo 2, a benchmark of international-level aerobic fitness.
During Hockey India League 2026, he was one of the most effective midfield anchors for Ranchi Royals, linking defence to attack and absorbing pressure against some of the best international players. Fulton himself publicly acknowledged how mobile and sharp Manpreet looked during the league.
So why remove a player who remains tactically indispensable, physically elite and mentally battle-hardened?
The real stakes: 2026 is not a rebuilding year
This is what makes the call so dangerous. 2026 is not a transitional season. It is a convergence year: the World Cup and the Asian Games sit barely three weeks apart, and the Asian Games gold medal is India’s direct ticket to LA 2028. Lose there, and Olympic qualification becomes exponentially harder.
Fulton has planned two “peaking blocks” for the year and wants a wider playing pool to manage fatigue across continents. But this explains rotation not exclusion. What raises red flags is that Manpreet has not even been processed for the Schengen visa required for the European leg of the Pro League later this year. That suggests the federation may be planning a longer-term separation.
If he misses Europe, he misses the Netherlands, Germany and Pakistan the very opponents India must be ready to defeat in World Cup knockouts.
Lessons Indian hockey should not forget
Indian hockey has walked this road before. In 2018, veteran Sardar Singh was dropped just before the World Cup in favour of “fresher legs.” The team collapsed tactically against the Netherlands in the quarterfinals, and even Hardik Singh later admitted the team lacked the midfield maturity Sardar provided.
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Olympic champions like V. Baskaran and Pargat Singh have already voiced concerns that removing Manpreet creates a leadership vacuum. If Hardik Singh or Vivek Sagar have an off day, who stabilises the team? Who absorbs pressure when Belgium or Australia start flooding the midfield?
There is no replacement for 400-plus games of international decision-making.
HIL 2026 has produced exciting new options Amandeep Lakra, Araijeet Hundal, Shilanand Lakra and Fulton is right to expand the pool. But expanding the pool should not mean cutting the spine. Manpreet Singh is not blocking India’s future. He is protecting it while the next generation grows into international demands.
Indian hockey is now betting that raw legs and potential can replace composure, spatial intelligence and leadership. If the midfield holds together in Rourkela and Hobart, the gamble will look visionary. If it cracks under pressure, the cost could be a World Cup campaign and an Olympic qualification pathway. For a nation that has waited 51 years for another men’s World Cup, this is not just a selection call it is a high-risk wager on history itself.
