Fit again and disciplined, Dilpreet seeks redemption

Chastened after time out of the India team, the striker is focused on fitness and delivering victories

- Sandip Sikdar

Sjoerd Marijne, Haren-dra Singh, Graham Reid and now Craig Fulton. No matter which coach took charge of the Indian men’s hockey team, striker Dilpreet Singh was always assured of a spot ever since his debut in 2018.

Possessing exceptional attacking and poaching skills, a teen-aged Dilpreet had shown a lot of promise as he was touted as the next big thing in India’s forward line. The player from Punjab had abrilliant firstyear, helping India to a Champions Trophy silver, Asian Games bronze and Asian Champions Trophy title ~ all in 2018.

Three years later, he helped India end a 4l-year medal drought at the Olympics when the team clinched bronze in Tokyo. He also played an important part in the quarterfinal against Great Britain, scoring the opening goal to set up a 3-1 victory.

But somewhere down the line, the Arjuna awardee’s on-field discipline and fitness levels kept dipping, so much so that he was dropped from the squad in 2022. When Fulton took over from Reid in the middle of 2023, even the South African was unimpressed with Dilpreet's fitness levels in the few matches he tried him.