Tamil Nadu Dragons will take on Hyderabad Toofans in the opening match as the men’s Hockey India League (HIL) kicks off at the renowned Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium in Chennai on Saturday.
This is the second edition of the revived Men’s Hockey India League, scheduled to be held across multiple cities, beginning in Chennai, before moving to Ranchi and concluding in Bhubaneswar with the final on January 26.
Hockey India aims to bring the league to as many hockey-loving cities as possible, allowing more fans to experience the excitement of high-octane matches featuring top players from around the world.
Opening Match Highlights
The league starts with hosts Accord Tamil Nadu Dragons facing Hyderabad Toofans. The Toofans finished as runners-up in the previous edition, narrowly losing (3-4) to the title-winning Shrachi Bengal Tigers. While the Toofans look to improve their fortunes this season, the Tamil Nadu Dragons aim to start strong after finishing just outside the top three last season, losing to JSW Soorma Hockey Club (2-3).
Tournament Structure
This season will feature a single round-robin stage, with the top four teams advancing to the knockout rounds. This differs from the previous edition, which had two groups of four for the initial phase. In the playoffs, the top two teams will compete in Qualifier 1, with the winner moving to the final and the loser going into Qualifier 2. The second team of Qualifier 2 will be determined by the winner of Eliminator 1, which involves the teams ranked 3rd and 4th in the league table.
Participating Teams
The eight teams in the Men’s HIL include:
- Defending champions Shrachi Bengal Tigers
- Hyderabad Toofans
- JSW Soorma Hockey Club
- SG Pipers
- Accord Tamil Nadu Dragons
- Vedanta Kalinga Lancers
- Ranchi Royals
- HIL GC, which has taken over UP Rudras
Key Players to Watch
Top Indian Players:
- Harmanpreet Singh (JSW Soorma Hockey Club)
- Hardik Singh (HIL GC)
- Manpreet Singh (Ranchi Royals)
- Rupinder Pal Singh (SG Pipers)
Junior World Cup Bronze winners will also be prominent, with India Colts Captain Rohit and Dilraj Singh for SG Pipers, Amir Ali and Manmeet for Ranchi Royals, Sunil PR for Vedanta Kalinga Lancers, and Prince Deep Singh for Accord Tamil Nadu Dragons.
Foreign Players to Keep an Eye On:
- Tom Boon (Ranchi Royals)
- Christopher Ruhr (Shrachi Bengal Tigers)
- Vincent Vanasch and Victor Wegnez (Soorma)
- Arthur Van Doren and Alexander Hendrickx (Vedanta Kalinga Lancers)
- Sam Ward (HIL GC)
Squad Overview for Men’s HIL 2025-26
SG Pipers
- Inddigihunt: Pawan, Rupinder Pal Singh, Varun Kumar, Manjeet, Rohit, Jarmanpreet Singh, Ankit Pal, Raj Kumar Pal, Thokchom Kingson Singh, Shamsher Singh, Aditya Lalage, Dilraj Singh, Sourabh Anand Khushwaha.
- Overseas: Tomas Santiago (ARG), Bram Van Battum (NED), Gareth Furlong (GBR), Willott Ky (AUS), Jacob Draper (GBR), Tomas Domene (ARG), Roman Duvekot (BEL).
Shrachi Bengal Tigers
- Inddigihunt: Vivek Lakra, Parmod, Jugraj Singh, Jaskaran Singh, Affan Yousuf, Pradhan Poovanna Chandura, Atul Deep, Pardeep Singh Sandhu, Ajinkya Jadhav, Ketan Kushwaha, Gursewak Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, Abhishek.
- Overseas: James Carr (New Zealand), Tommy Willems (Belgium), Gauthier Boccard (Belgium), Enrique Gonzalez (ESP), Christopher Ruhr (Germany), Tom Grambusch (Germany), Sean Findlay (New Zealand).
JSW Soorma Hockey Club
- Inddigihunt: Mohith HS, Gurinder Singh, Pradip Mandal, Sukhvinder, Harmanpreet Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad, Jeet Pal, Akashdeep Singh, Prabhjot Singh, Harjeet Singh, Pawan Rajbhar, Maninder Singh, Gurjant Singh.
- Overseas: Vincent Vanasch (BEL), Nicolas Della Torre (ARG), Jeremy Hayward (AUS), Victor Wegnez (BEL), Nicolas Poncelet (BEL), Nicolas Keenan (ARG), Dayaan Cassiem (RSA).
Ranchi Royals
- Inddigihunt: Rajak Pankaj Kumar, Suraj Karkera, Purti Ashish Tani, Ravneet Singh, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, Anmol Ekka, Amir Ali, Vishnukant Singh, Yashdeep Siwach, Manpreet Singh, Manmeet Singh Rai, Araijeet Singh Hundal, Mandeep Singh.
- Overseas: Joshua Beltz (AUS), Van Oots Maxime (BEL), Tim Howard (AUS), Jack Waller (GBR), Mustaphaa Cassiem (RSA), Tom Boon (BEL), Sam Lane (NZL).
Accord Tamil Nadu Dragons
- Inddigihunt: Prince Deep Singh, Anand Lakra, Pruthvi G M, Amit Rohidas, Mohammed Raheel Mouseen, Chandan Yadav, Shesha Gowda, Arun J, Sushil Dhanwar, Adrohit Ekka, Selvaraj Kanagaraj, Selvam Karthi, Uttam Singh.
- Overseas: David Harte (IRE), Sander de Wijn (NED), Tom Craig (AUS), Blake Govers (AUS), Paul Kaufmann (GER), Thomas Sorsby (GBR), Nathan Ephraums (AUS).
Hyderabad Toofans
- Inddigihunt: Bikramjit Singh, Mukul Sharma, Amandeep Lakra, Devindar Walmiki, Sundram Singh Rajawat, Nilakanta Sharma, Sumit Walmiki, Rajinder Singh, Rahim Aakib Sayyed, Shilanand Lakra, Irengbam Rohit Singh, Talwinder Singh, Arshdeep Singh.
- Overseas: Jean Paul Danneberg (GER), Arthur de Sloover (NED), Zachary Wallace (GBR), Michel Struthoff (GER), Nic Woods (AUS), Tim Brand (AUS), Jacob Anderson (AUS).
Vedanta Kalinga Lancers
- Inddigihunt: Krishan B Pathak, Sunil PB, Pratap Lakra, Rohit Kullu, Sanjay, Rabichandra Singh Moirangthem, Amit Kumar Toppo, Rosan Kujur, Gursahibjit Singh, Angad Bir Singh, Deepak Pradhan, Dilpreet Singh, Boby Singh Dhami.
- Overseas: Jed Snowden (AUS), Antoine Kina (BEL), Arthur Van Doren (BEL), Alexander Hendrickx (BEL), Craig Marais (AUS), Liam Henderson (AUS), Cooper Burns (AUS).
HIL GC
- Inddigihunt: Prashant Kumar Chauhan, Jasjit Singh Kular, Mohammad Haris, Surender Kumar, Prasant Barla, Talem Priyobarta, Hardik Singh, Manmeet Singh, Rahul Yadav, Ajeet Yadav, Sudeep Chirmako, Gurjot Singh, Lalit Upadhyay.
- Overseas: James Mazarelo (GBR), James Albery (GBR), Kane Russell (NZL), Daragh Walsh (IRE), Simon Yorston (NZL), Sam Ward (GBR), Tanguy Cosyns (BEL).
Tamil Nadu Dragons will face Hyderabad Toofans on Saturday at 7:30 PM IST.