Indian men's hockey team forward Gurjant Singh is hoping to receive an opportunity to play in front of the home crowd at the FIH Odisha Hockey World Cup Bhubaneswar-Rourkela next year, and banking on the fans' support for added motivation in the global event, should he get included in the side.
Gurjant had played a vital role in India bagging silver at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games recently and he is looking forward to improving his game and making a bigger impact in the upcoming tournaments.
"Playing in the World Cup is every hockey player's dream. And I really hope I will be given the opportunity of playing the tournament at our home ground. There is always a great buzz and fanfare in Odisha. And I really hope I will be given the opportunity of playing the tournament at our home ground.
There is always a great buzz and fanfare in Odisha and I am sure that the fans' support will motivate us to play at our best," said the 27-year-old forward.Gurjant said, while it was a great honour to be a member of the side that won the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games historic bronze after more than four decades and the Commonwealth Games medal, but he is looking to make a bigger impact in upcoming tournaments.
"I am glad that I was part of the Silver medal-winning team at CWG. It's a huge honour for me to be an Olympic and CWG Medal winner. However, I have noted down the points that I need to improve on and I am determined to make an even bigger impact in tournaments such as the FIH Odisha Hockey Men's World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela," he said.
Asked about the immediate focus of the Indian team, Gurjant said, "We are working to put up a good show at the FIH Hockey Pro League 2022-23. A good performance there will give us a huge confidence boost before the all-important FIH Men's World Cup 2023 Bhubaneswar-Rourkela. We are looking forward to the challenge and are determined to keep getting better as a side."