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A year on since debut, Rajinder now central to India’s plans
The midfielder has made rapid strides since his elevation to the senior side, which is playing in the Asia Cup
Rajinder Singh is quite the new blue-eyed boy of the Indian hockey team. How else can one explain the attacking midfielder getting picked over double Olympic bronze medallists Shamsher Singh and Gurjant Singh for the ongoing Asia Cup.
But the team management has solid reasons. Compared to influential former India midfielder and skipper Sardar Singh, Rajinder showed tremendous skill at the domestic level, then at national camps and now in the national team. This has led the RP Singh-chaired selection committee, chief coach Craig Fulton and skipper Harmanpreet Singh to put their faith in the 22-year-old, who also hails from the same village as Sardar – Sant Nagar in Haryana’s Sirsa district.
Coincidentally, it was because of his idol that Rajinder began his journey in hockey, growing up playing on a pitch laid by Sardar at Sirsa’s Namdhari Academy which Rajinder joined in 2014.
He was also lucky to play with the former India playmaker five years ago when everything shut down during Covid. It was during this time that Rajinder grew close to his idol and engaged in daily battles with him – Sardar would play in a team against Rajinder and the other academy boys.
“I trained a lot with Sardar paaji during lockdown. He made me focus heavily on receiving, how to beat players with your first touch and my backhand form,” recalls Rajinder. “But the most important thing I learnt was by observing him, the way he would control the ball and know when to switch up to attack. It’s a very crucial skill for a midfielder.”
He used that experience to break into the Indian junior team when he played a pivotal role in helping win the 2022 Sultan of Johor Cup and the 2023 Junior Asia Cup. These performances, along with his display at the 2023 National Championships where Haryana finished runners-up – helped earn his India debut in October last year.
Rajinder has played 14 internationals since and has already become a pivotal part of the team, with the ability to control the speed of the ball and dominate the opposition during full press apart from beautiful passing skills.
“As an attacking midfielder my role is to use my speed and rush in from the right flank, make circle entries and give the strikers a chance to score. I am also focusing a lot on our game inside the circle to ensure we convert field goals. We don’t want to rely heavily on PCs,” said Rajinder.
He credited seniors like Hardik Singh, former skipper Manpreet Singh and Harmanpreet in particular for his rapid development. “Hardik and Manpreet paaji play in the midfield with me, so they guide me a lot. After every mistake, Hardik paaji tells me what I should do next. Even Harman paaji (in defence) often calls out from behind to guide my positioning,” says Rajinder. “I’ve learnt a lot from them, they show us how to handle the situation, stay calm, and focus on our game.”
The biggest testament of his worth came in October 2024 when an uncapped Rajinder was sold for ₹23 lakh to Hyderabad Toofans, who won a bidding battle with UP Rudras. He was brilliant in Hockey India League (HIL), playing a crucial role in helping the franchise finish runners-up.
With the Toofans, he got enough time to interact with greats like 2016 Olympic and 2023 World Cup winner Gonzalo Peillat and FIH Player of the Year nominee Zach Wallace of England.
He continued to build on that momentum and impressed during the Pro League too. What particularly stood out about Rajinder was his peripheral vision, ability to anticipate the opposition’s moves and switch from attack to defence during the opposition’s counterattack.
“Craig is very strict about defence. Defend to win, defend to counter is his mantra. I want to focus on my defence because I don’t want any player to dodge past me or break through my defence.”
Though he doesn’t look it, the well-built Rajinder is very quick, an outcome of his fitness regime. The youngster spends extra hours pumping iron in the gym as well as on the field to bring out his best. Asked about his Yo-Yo test score, a shy Rajinder smiled and decided to keep it a secret.
