FIH Olympic Qualifiers: Birender Lakra replaces injured dragflicker Varun Kumar for crucial matches against Russia

Bhubaneswar: Dragflicker Varun Kumar was on Wednesday ruled out of India’s FIH Olympic Qualifiers against Russia owing to a shoulder injury and replaced by defender Birender Lakra. [caption id=“attachment_5693561” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Representational image. Reuters[/caption] The Indian men’s team will play Russia on 1 and 2 November at the Kalinga Hockey Stadium in Bhubaneswar. Hockey India announced the replacement for Varun who sustained an injury on his shoulder and right bicep. “Varun Kumar got injured on Monday while training. He has been receiving treatment since then, but unfortunately, it has not shown enough signs of improvement,” said chief coach Graham Reid. He added, “We have decided to replace him with Birendra Lakra, a class defender with over 170 International caps. He is very experienced and knows well the conditions in Bhubaneswar.