Manpreet Singh ruled out of Asian Champions Trophy with calf injury, Vivek Sagar Prasad named in squad

With only a few days left for the Asian Champions Trophy 2026 to begin, the Indian men's hockey team has suffered a major blow. Experienced midfielder Manpreet Singh has been ruled out of the entire tournament after injuring his calves during practice. Vivek Sagar Prasad has been included in the squad in his place.

The tournament begins on Tuesday. India will defend their title. Besides India, Malaysia, Japan, China, South Korea and Bangladesh will also take part.

At a press conference ahead of the matches, captain Harmanpreet Singh said Manpreet Singh had been ruled out of the "Hero Asian Champions Trophy Punjab 2026" because of a calf injury sustained in practice. He said Vivek Sagar Prasad had been taken into the Indian team in his place.

The injury came just when Manpreet was looking forward to playing on his home ground, where he learnt his first lessons in hockey. Since making his debut for the Indian senior team in 2011, Manpreet has played 430 international matches.

In that time he has won two Olympic medals and three Asian Games gold medals for India. Despite such big achievements, he had never played a single match before fans in Punjab, his birthplace.

India will play their first league match against Bangladesh on October 27. They will then face China on October 29, Japan on October 30, Malaysia on November 1 and South Korea on November 2.

The league matches will be held in Jalandhar from October 27 to November 2. The tournament will then move to the "Olympian Balbir Singh Senior International Hockey Stadium" in Mohali, where the semifinals and the medal matches will be played on November 4 and 5.

This is the ninth edition of the tournament. India have won the Asian Champions Trophy a record five times. South Korea have also won the trophy several times.