Dipsan Tirkey, Nilam Sanjeep Xess, Anand Lakra and Amit Rohidas of Kalinga Lancers were felicitated in presence of Sports Minister Sudam Marandi, Minister Debi Prasad Mishra, Sports department Secretary and other officials at the programme.
Wishing Kalinga Lancers a success in coming days, the Chief Minister said, “It’s indeed a very glorious moment for all of us. Kalinga Lancers has made all of us proud. The spectacular achievement of the team in the HIL 2017 will go a long way in encouraging youngsters of the State.”
Glenn Turner's field goal in the 18th minute and twin penalty corner conversions from captain Moritz Furste in the 30th and 59th minutes helped Kalinga Lancers atone their horrific show in the last edition's final.
Skipper Moritz Fuerste (30th, 58th) converted two penalty corners for the Lancers before Glenn Turner (18th minute) struck a field effort for the Odisha outfit, which lost the final last year to Jaypee Punjab Warriors.
For the first time finalist, Dabang Mumbai Affan Yousuf (33rd) scored the lone goal from a penalty corner variation.
Earlier in the day, Agustin Mazzilli scored a late field goal to help Uttar Pradesh Wizards register a 5-4 come-from-behind win over Delhi Waveriders and claim the bronze medal in the fifth edition of the tournament.
Also read: UP Wizards aim to break HIL semi-final jinx, face Kalinga
Trailing 3-4 with three minutes remaining in the game, the Argentine striker found himself at the right place at the right time to clinically finish Florent van Aubel's assist from a tight angle to hand UP Wizards the lead and their first podium finish in the history of the tournament.
It was action-packed first quarter of the final in which both the Lancers and Dabang Mumbai created real scoring chances but both the teams failed to make them count.
In their first final of the HIL, it was Dabang Mumbai who were more assertive in the first quarter but they failed to get past an alert Andrew Charter in front of Lancers goal.
Also read: HIL: Goalkeeper Charter takes Kalinga to second successive final
The Lancers finally broke the deadlock in the 18th minute through tournament's highest scorer so far, Australian Glenn Turner, who found himself positioned to tap home a Mortuiz Fuerste pass from out side the D after it took a deflection from Lalit Upadhayay's stick.
A minute later, Dabang Mumbai secured a penalty corner but Charter stood like a rock in front of the Lancers goal to deny Harmanpreet Singh.
Dabang Mumbai captain Florian Fuchs then came tentalisingly close when he sprinted into the opposition circle, beating a host of defenders but his diagonal shot from the right went inches wide off the target even as a diving Gurjant Singh far away failed to get his stick.
Meanwhile, Dabang Mumbai skipper Florian Fuchs was named Player of the Tournament of the Coal India Hockey India League.
Fuchs, who slammed eight goals in the tournament and helped Mumbai to enter in the summit clash for the first time, received Rs 50 lakh.
Also read: Dabang Mumbai beat Kalinga Lancers 5-2 in HIL
"We should be proud of our achievement," Fuchs, who also got the Hero achiever award, said during the presentation ceremony here.
The maximum goal award was given to Kalinga duo of Glenn Turner and skipper Moritz Furste for scoring maximum number of goals in the tournament. Turner and Furste, who scored 12 goals apiece, got richer by Rs 20 lakh.
Among others, Harmanpreet Singh of Mumbai got the upcoming player of the tournament award for scoring seven goals in the league.
Bhubaneswar: Representing the country in hockey tournaments like Olympics, Asia Cup, Sultan Azlan Shah Cup, Champions Trophy not only command respect for being great ambassadors, but also being fountainhead of expertise and experience which will foster improvements and development of the sport. However, such sportsmen of our State allege that they are being grossly sidelined in the Hockey India League (HIL) a tournament which aims to popularize Hockey in the country.
Such is the behaviour meted out to our former hockey players that they are not being offered tickets or seats to watch the tournaments held in Bhubaneswar. Rather than using those for developing our own franchise – Kalinga Lancers – the players not even allowed watching the matches in their own State.
Olympian Lazarus Barla, William Khalko and former captain of the Indian Hockey team Prabodh Tirkey have levelled such allegations and along with the office bearers of the Hockey Gangpur Association submitted a memorandum to the executive director of Odisha Sports Development and Promotion Company (OSDPC), which jointly owns Kalinga Lancers.
“It feels like there is no contribution from the hockey players of the State in the HIL. The fact is that we are losing respect by complaining about it. It feels like as if we are begging for respect and it hurts,” said Lazarus.
Also Read: Ranchi Rays trounce Kalinga Lancers 7-2 for first win in HIL 2017
“It is very unfortunate that we have to get tickets and then watch the matches because we have done so much for Odisha and the country as well. Even I was also associated with Kalinga Lancers. At least we should be given passes,” said Prabodh.
Meanwhile, executive director of OSDPC, Sushant Das had assured that steps will be taken to not repeat such callous attitude towards former players.
“We had made provisions to make calls to all the players personally give them tickets. Some Olympians have collected tickets from us. We will take steps to ensure that they get tickets and car passes going forward,” said Das.
Moritz Fuerste of Kalinga Lancers and his men and Rupinder Pal Singh of Waveriders and co will be in action at the stadium from 7 pm.
Notably, Indian players of Kalinga Lancers have been undertaking practices at Kalinga Stadium since January 10 whereas foreign players reached here on January 13. Coach Mark Hager has been giving tips to the players of Kalinga Lancers to improvise their skills while observing the game of the team members.
Out of six matches played between Kalinga Lancers and Delhi Waveriders in the HIL, three have been won by Waveriders while Lancers got victorious in two matches. One match had ended in a draw.
The decision to postpone the HIL, originally scheduled for January-February 2018, was taken after a meeting of the tournament's Governing Committee, comprising representatives of Hockey India and other stakeholders.
The decision was also prompted by a packed international calendar comprising the Hockey World League (HWL) Finals in Bhubaneswar in December 2017, the Commonwealth Games at Gold Coast in April 2018 followed by the Asian Games in Indonesia in August 2018.
This will be followed by the FIH Hockey World Cup, to be held from November 24 to December 16, 2018, also in Bhubaneswar.
HIL Chairman Mohd Mushtaque Ahmad clarified that it will only be a temporary discontinuation and that the cash-rich tournament will return in 2019.
"Due to a conflict in dates of the schedule of Hockey India League 2018 and a major international tournament (Indoor World Cup), which was likely to restrict the participation of international players, it was decided that the best solution was to postpone the conduct of the sixth season of the League," he said in a statement.
"I want to emphasise that we want to resume the League in 2019 albeit with greater prospects to make it more viable financially, not only for the stakeholders but also for the players."
"This decision was made after consultation with all our commercial partners and meeting the contractual obligations of all parties involved," he added.
The HIL in these past five years has given rise to players who have gone on to make a name for themselves in world hockey.
The HIL significantly contributed in the success of the Indian Junior men's team that won the 2016 Junior World Cup while the senior men's team advanced to a commendable No.6 position in the world ranking.
The foreign players also have hugely benefited from the League, mostly financially, by playing in the month-long tournament along side players from various countries.
"HIL has undoubtedly been a fantastic platform for players from around the world to showcase their talent and the participating teams thoroughly enjoyed the experience over the last five seasons," Ahmad said.
"The Governing Committee would like to thank everyone involved with the HIL and all those who participated in the first five seasons of the tournament," he added.
Needing only a draw in their final game to qualify for the semi-finals, the last year's runners ran riot with goals from Adam Dixon (ninth minute), Moritz Furste (24th, penalty corner), Lalit Upadhyay (34th) and Dharamvir Singh (39th).
The win took second-placed Kalinga's points tally to 28 as they and Dabang Mumbai are the two teams who have reached the knock-outs to be held here.
Bottom-placed Punjab remained at the bottom of the table with 17 points from eight matches.
Punjab, who were coming into the match with three consecutive defeats, continued their slump against Kalinga, who lost to the former in last edition's final.
Punjab got off to a disastrous start as they were behind by two goals in the early ninth minute when English midfielder Dixon made amends for a trapping mistake during a penalty corner execution as he gathered the ball and ran past couple of defenders on the right before slotting in from a tight angle.
Punjab showed good character after conceding the lead. They made good attacking build-ups and Baljit Singh tested Kalinga custodian Andrew Charter with a back-hander from the top of the 'D'.
The hosts earned three penalty corners in the first five minutes of the second quarter but none of them were trapped properly. Kalinga too missed one penalty corner with a mistrapping by the stopper.
But Kalinga corrected the mistake in their next attempt and German talisman Furste fired a grounder to the right, beating the outstretched right foot of Clemons to mark his seventh penalty corner goal and ninth of the campaign.
Punjab too had their chances, as many as three penalty corners, but the efforts from Mink van der Weerden and Mark Gleghorne were not enough to beat Kalinga goalkeeper Charter and his defence.
Kalinga continued their good game and made it 5-0 in the 34th minute as Billy Bakker, from the top of the circle, played a square pass to the left where Upadhhay was stationed unmarked. The India forward hammered home at the near post, much to the disappointment of the home camp.
Also Read: Delhi hammer Punjab Warriors 6-1 in HIL; jump to third spot
Five minutes later, it was 7-0 and it seemed very easy as Punjab defence was out of place. Gurjinder Singh dribbled past two guarding defenders guarding the left post before passing to Malak Singh, who chipped from the baseline to the front of the goal. And only thing an unmarked Dharmvir did was to tap the ball in.
Few minutes later Lalit was again at the opponent circle but he failed to reach in time to meet a baseline cross from Pardeep Mor.
Punjab threw everything at the end but couldn't pull back even a goal. S.V. Sunil thought to have opened their account for the night with 3.15 minutes left on the clock but the goal was disallowed for a ball obstruction before it reached the Karnataka forward.
It completed a harrowing night for Barry Dancer-coached side, which is now on the verge of elimination.
They play their final league game on Monday against Delhi Waveriders, who have 21 point from eight games.
Uttar Pradesh are fourth with 20 points from seven matches, while former champions Ranchi Rays are fifth with 18 points from nine games.
After Ashley Jackson gave them a 1-0 lead with a successful penalty corner conversion in the 23rd minute, Ranchi showcased fluent and aggressive hockey and found the field goals, with each counted as two in the tournament, from Sumit (30th), German forward Christopher Ruhr (31st) and Manpreet Singh (44th).
The huge win helped Ranchi move up to the second position with eight points from three games, while despite the loss, Kalinga remained at the top with 10 points from three games. Dabang Mumbai, who have seven points from two matches, are third, while Uttar Pradesh Wizards are fourth with a point from as many game.
Ranchi, who drew their opener against Dabang Mumbai and lost to Kalinga in Bhubaneswar, were determined to make the best out of their opening home game. They played a high-intensity game, dominated possession and penetrated Kalinga's defence regularly.
German Ruhr was at the forefront of their attack and the 23-year-old this edition's import was in a position to put the hosts ahead towards the end of the first quarter but he became impatient and fired his shot wide of the left post.
They, however, upped the ante as soon as the second quarter began, earning a penalty corner in the very first minute. But Jackson's lethargic flick failed to challenge Kalinga's Australian goalkeeper Andrew Charter.
But the English set-piece specialist rectified himself in the next opportunity which came in the 23rd minute. His flick hit the left pad of Andrew Charter and went in, with final defender Moritz Furste stranded.
Kalinga responded strongly to the goal but their star striker Glenn Turner fluffed two close-range chances. They earned a penalty corner too, but home team goalkeeper Tyler Lovell was not troubled by Gurjinder Singh's flick which went straight at him.
With the visitors not making their chances count, Ranchi made sure that Kalinga continue to suffer as Sumit's drive from close range moved past Charter, giving the hosts a 3-0 lead at the stroke of the half-time.
One minute into the third quarter, Ranchi showed their ruthlessness as Jackson's solo run from the half-line saw him feed Ruhr at the top of the circle and the German lifted the ball in past changed goalkeeper Abhinav Pandey to make it 5-0.
Despite the handsome 5-0 lead, the home teams didn't relent and three minutes later Jackson had the chance for his second penalty corner conversion but this shot flew wide.
Also Read: HIL: Kalinga Lancers beat Ranchi Rays
However, the goals kept coming. Gurbaj Singh intercepted at the half-line on the right and charged forward before finding an unmarked Manpreet with a precisive cross at the left post. And Manpreet only had to guide the ball in to make it an impregnable 7-0 in the 44th minute.
Already out of the contest, Kalinga pulled two goals back with Lalit Upadhyay tapping home a base-line cross from Aran Zalewski in the 49th minute.
The goal failed to lift the spirit of the visitors, whose defensive structure had a day to forget.
Lakra, who missed out on the Rio Olympics due to injury and was out of action for over six months in 2016, made his comeback into the Indian team at the Asian Champions Trophy in October.
But with competition for a place in the national team getting tougher, the 26-year-old is aiming to reach peak form and fitness when he represents former champions Ranchi Rays in the HIL.
"The results at the Asian Champions Trophy and the Tour of Australia was a great confidence booster for me. After a long lay-off due to injury, it takes a while to gain back the confidence of playing high intensity matches. At the back of your head, you are thinking I shouldn't get injured again. But my teammates, physio and coaches gave me a lot of confidence and motivated me throughout this difficult phase. Hockey India too made me feel important by ensuring I got the best treatment," he stated on Wednesday.
"I am ready for the challenge. This year's Coal India HIL will be a new beginning for me and I really want to make this opportunity count," insisted Lakra.
"Gaining match practice against so many top players going into an important calendar year for Indian team is crucial for me," said the Odisha defender.
At this edition of HIL, Lakra will play to win his third title. He won the inaugural edition in 2013 with the now-disbanded Ranchi Rhinos and his second title came in 2015 with his current side Ranchi Rays.
Lakra feels this year their team has great potential in lifting the coveted trophy again. His defensive partners are Kothajit Singh and the Australian duo of Fergus Kavanagh and Timothy Deavin, who will play in front of goalkeeper Tyler Lovell.
Also read: Birendra Lakra gets Biju Patnaik State Award
Among the midfield options, Manpreet Singh, Gurbaj Singh, Sumit Kumar and captain Ashley Jackson form a strong combination, while new recruit Christopher Ruhr of Germany, English veteran Barry Middleton, Trent Mitton and Mohammad Imran Khan are strong attacking options for head coach Harendra Singh.
"We have a strong line-up and many of us in the team have played together for a while so we understand each other's game well," he warned the opponents.
"Having players (defender Vikramjit Singh and midfielder Simranjeet Singh) who are carrying the confidence from their Junior World Cup win will also make a difference to our team."
Rays arrived in Mumbai on January 15 and have been training at Mumbai's Mahindra Hockey Stadium where they play their first match against Dabang Mumbai on the opening day of the HIL on January 21.
"Thus far, the training camp has been going well and the team is enjoying this time of coming together," said Lakra.
The teenage defender, who hails from Bargarh district in Odisha, said the league will also help him to find a route to improve financial situation back home.
"This is a huge opportunity for me. While I am very nervous to play against such top players in Coal India HIL, I am aware this exposure will make a lot of difference to my game," he said in a release.
"The money (approx Rs 2 lakh) from HIL will help me buy a kit and shoes. I also want to send some money for my parents as it will help them a great deal," he added.
The HIL begins on January 21 and the last edition runners-up Lancers began their camp on Tuesday. "I am very excited. It is slowly starting to sink in that I will be playing with senior players. At the camp, I got to meet Devinder Walmiki, Pardeep Mor, Lalit Upadhyay and Dharamvir Singh from the senior squad," Sanjeep said.
"I also keep in regular touch with Birendra Lakra and Dipsan Tirkey (both from Odisha) to understand the challenges in the league and how I can keep calm. They motivate me a lot," the defender said.
Sanjeep made his India debut at the 12th South Asian Games last year in Guwahati. He was also part of the Junior India World Cup probables' camp at Sports Authority of India (SAI), South Centre in Bengaluru.
He threw light on how useful the SAI camp for him, especially developing his drag-flicking skills.
"That camp was very useful for me though I didn't make it to the team. I am a defender and drag-flicker and I got to practice a lot with Harmanpreet Singh and worked on my technique.
"He is extremely good at drag-flicking and he motivates me a lot. The Junior World Cup win is a big inspiration for youngsters like me and I wish to emulate the team's success in the future tournaments," Sanjeep said.
Glenn Turner gave the hosts the 1-0 lead in the 43rd minute with a penalty corner deflection but Punjab came out with two field goals, each counted as two in this edition of HIL, as Player of the Match Simon Orchard (49th) and Satbir Singh (58th) found the targets.
With this win, Warriors jumped to the second place -- same as Lancers but behind on goal difference -- as the hosts, despite the defeat, maintained their top spot in the league.
Lancers play their final home match on Monday when they face third placed Ranchi Rays in the eastern derby.
Both Warriors and Lancers started the match on a passive note with neither being able to create good chances in the first quarter.
But as the match progressed, they found the rhythm and especially Punjab threatened Lancers in the dying moments of the second quarter that resulted in four back-to-back penalty corners.
But Lancers' defence stood tall against the visiting drag-flickers Jasjit Kular and Varun Kumar as the first 30 minutes of play yielded no goals.
Continuing their momentum, the visiting side, coached by Australian Barry Dancers, pushed forward and skipper Sardar Singh earned a penalty corner in the 36th minute but the variation didn't work.
Lancers then earned a penalty corner in the 42nd minute and Turner deflected home a variation strategy from Moritz Furste, much to the jubilation of the Kalinga crowd.
However, Warriros, driven by the hard working Sardar, found the lead in the 49th minute. Sardar played the ball to Matt Gohdes, whose cross from the right in front of the goal was tapped in by compatriot Orchard, getting the better of goalkeeper Andrew Charter and Pardeep Mor.
The home team, stunned by the field goal, responded strongly by earning three quick penalty corners but their lust for a variation that would fetch them field goals went awry.
Even though Furste twice fed Turner with tactical precision and superb vision the Australian was not able to deliver the punch and on the turnover, Warriors increased their lead to 4-1 as Jasjit drilled a long ball inside the cirlce that found a touch from an unmarked Satbir and went in, giving the two-time runners-up five crucial points.
While a win for the Kalinga Lancers tonight would mean that they would almost certainly confirm their spot in the semifinals in Chandigarh on 25 February.
Delhi Waveriders vied for their second win in the league to keep their hopes intact to stay in contention and the home team did not disappoint as they came up with an inspired performance ensuring a strong start to put pressure on the visitors.
Kalinga Lancers’ keeper Abhinav Kumar Pandey was kept busy at the post early in the game, thanks to the heroics of Mandeep Singh who worked in tandem with junior India teammate Santa Singh to put pressure by finding gaps in the circle, creating chances at scoring in the initial minutes of the game. They handed an early blow to the visiting team when Talwinder Singh played one-to-one with Simon Child before he could take the strike at the post. The ninth minute goal put them in a bold 2-0 lead.
Mandeep Singh continued to enthrall the home crowd with his exceptional stick work when he won his team their first PC in the 21st minute. But Rupinder Pal Singh’s flick to the center of the post was padded away promptly by Abhinav Kumar Pandey denying the Delhi Waveriders a further lead.
Interestingly, Rupinder has been successful at converting just one goal from the 10 PCs he has attempted this season.
In the 24th minute, Mandeep earned yet another PC for the home side but Justin Reid-Ross’s attempt was denied. Though Kalinga Lancers won their first PC with just two minutes to go for the first-half, they failed to convert it. But the Delhi Waveriders rallied to work a set piece almost immediately when they earned three back-to-back PCs in the 29th minute.
They were third time successful when Justin Reid-Ross fired the ball away to the keeper’s left to extend their home advantage to finish the quarter with a 3-0 lead.
Moritz Fuerste played a crucial role in earning his team a PC in the 38th minute after he made a perfect assist to Adam Dixon who found Rupinder Pal Singh’s foot in the circle. But a miss-trap denied them a goal. However, they came back strongly in the 40th minute when Fuerste came up with an inch-perfect dribble into the circle only to find an unmarked Dharamvir Singh who made no mistake in sending the ball past Delhi Waveriders’ keeper Vincent Vanasch. The field goal helped the visitors narrow the deficit to 2-3.
A video referral by Kalinga Lancers’ Glenn Turner saw them being awarded a PC in the 42nd minute. But Vincent Vanasch came up with a class-act to save the fiercely struck drag flick by Fuerste to deny them an equaliser. With just 13 seconds left for the third quarter to end, Turner helped his team win another PC but a miss-trap by Billy Bakker saw them try a desperate variation. Though Tom Craig converted a goal, it was denied by the umpires after a video referral by the home team was upheld.
The final quarter witnessed nail-biting action keeping the dynamic Delhi crowd on the edge of their seats. Though Delhi Waveriders did well with their defence to retain the lead, the dangerous Moritz Fuerste could not be stopped in the 54th minute when he was brilliantly assisted by Amit Rohidas that saw him beat Vincent Vanasch to earn a crucial 4-3 lead.
But skipper Rupinder Pal Singh spoiled the Kalinga Lancers party when he converted a PC in the 57th minute to equalise the score to 4-4. The action didn’t end there when Simon Child was successful in converting a field goal after he was set up by Mandeep Singh to hand the home team a 6-4 victory.
Ramandeep (4th and 23rd minutes) and Akashdeep (27th, 48th) were stars for Uttar Pradesh Wizards’s.
Playing in front of a packed Kalinga Stadium, UP Wizards struck their first goal, only seconds into the game, through Argentine Agustin Mazzilli’s field strike to go 2-0 up as according to the rules of the tournament one field goal is counted as two.
The young forward who was leading the visitors’ attack was inch perfect in putting the ball past Kalinga Lancers’ keeper Abhinav Kumar Pandey, after he was brilliantly assisted by Arthur Van Doren in the first minute of the match.
Ramandeep, who had scored a fierce 59th minute goal for Uttar Pradesh Wizards in their first game this season, further enhanced their lead to 4-0 with a stunning goal from the left flank in the fourth minute.
It was a quick-thinking Akashdeep who did a brilliant job by setting up the goal, thus silencing the boisterous home crowd.
Uttar Pradesh Wizards, who dominated the first quarter, had a chance to take their lead to 5-0 when they earned their first penalty corner but a poor injection by Akashdeep denied them the luxury.
The second quarter saw the home team play an attacking game, often making forays into the circle trying desperately to find the gap for a field goal but in vain.
Uttar Pradesh Wizards, meanwhile, launched a lethal counter attack and found success almost immediately with Ramandeep scoring the team’s third field goal in the 23rd minute.
A skillful dribble into the circle by Seve Van Ass, beat Kalinga Lancers’ defender Amit Rohidas to find Ramandeep who had fashioned himself in front of the post and made no mistake in putting the ball past Pandey.
Later, Akashdeep pumped yet another goal into the Kalinga Lancers’ post in the 27th minute taking their lead to a swashbuckling 8-0.
Marching into the third quarter after a formidable start, the Uttar Pradesh Wizards were patient, playing a sensible game and denied much of the ball possession to their opponents.
In the 34th minute, they earned their second penalty corner of the game, thanks to Akashdeep but failed to convert the chance as Kalinga Lancers keeper Andrew Charter did well in padding away the drag flick ball by skipper VR Raghunath.
Kalinga Lancers’ dangerous forward Glenn Turner was strangely off the mark today. He missed a good chance in the 42nd minute when Lalit Upadhyay set him up rather seamlessly.
The visitors continued their rampaging form into the fourth quarter as Akashdeep put another one past a hapless Lancers goalkeeper Charter after racing into the circle with little threat from the rival defenders in the 48th minute.
This effort earned the Uttar Pradesh Wizards a 10-0 lead and five points from the match. They also became the first team in the league to win an away match.
Dabang Mumbai will take on Delhi Waveriders in Mumbai tomorrow.
Bhubaneswar:The third edition of the Hockey India League (HIL) got off to a glittering start with the opening ceremony, studded with fireworks, laser show and dance performances, enthralling the 6,000-odd spectators at the Kalinga Stadium here Thursday.
Actress Perizaad Zorabian was the emcee of the event and unwrapped a spectacular laser show which gripped the audience followed by a remarkable dance performances of Odisha actors Sabyasachi and Archita.
Following the ceremony, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik unveiled the HIL trophy for which the six participating teams will be clashing against each other over the next one month.
Next up, a dazzling fireworks display adorned the skies for five minutes before home side Kalinga Lancers and Ranchi Rays stepped on to the turf to play the tournament opener.
"For the inauguration of the most prominent hockey league in the world, we have tried and crafted a similarly delightful evening meant for our fans, followers and spectators as well as the participating teams who are all geared to put up some brilliant game of hockey in the imminent month-long league," HIL chairman Narinder Batra said at the ceremony.
Being among the top drag-flickers of the world, the Karnataka player led the Wizards twice and took the team to the semifinals of the previous two editions. The Indian defender plans to materialise maximum scoring opportunities through penalty corners.
"The league this time is going to be tough as the best players of the world will take part in it. The strength of our team will be the drag-flicking skills," he said in a statement.
The 26-year-old drag-flick specialist was third in the lists of the top goal scorers of both the previous two editions.
Proving his worth and becoming a motivation to the defence line of Wizards in the first season of the HIL, Raghunath scored a total number of nine goals where all the goals came from penalty corner conversions. He scored four goals to help the team take third position.
Trailing the achievement of the first season, he scored eight goals again from penalty corners in the subsequent edition. However, his team failed to finish on the podium.
In addition to Raghunath, the team also has the service of the Netherlands goal-poacher Jeroen Hertzberger, who didn't play last time citing busy international schedule.
Raghunath said that their defence has been strengthened due to the availability of talented Dutch internationals Marcel Balkestein and Jolie Wouter.
"I am excited to share the field with Harbir Singh, the Netherlands' Marcel Balkestein and Jolie Wouter, who are surely a boost to our defence line-up. I look forward to the third season and aiming to improve our position by finishing on a winning note this time."
UP Wizards will play their first match Jan 23 against defending champions Delhi Waveriders in Lucknow. The opening day of the league will witness Kalinga Lancers taking on Ranchi Rays at the Kalinga Stadium in Bhubaneswar.