Asian Champions Trophy 2023: Teams, fixtures, match timings and everything you need to know

Hockey fans can rejoice this week as the much-awaited 2023 Men’s Asian Champions Trophy gets underway in Chennai from 3 August (Thursday). A total of six teams, including hosts India will take part in the seventh edition of the Asian Champions Trophy. South Korea are the defending champions, having beaten Japan 4-2 on shootouts in the 2021 edition in Dhaka. This will be the first time in 16 years that Chennai will host a major international hockey tournament. The last time Chennai did so was in 2007 when they hosted the men’s Asia Cup that India won, beating South Korea in the final. India have named a strong 18-man squad that comprises of captain Harmanpreet Singh and his deputy Hardik Singh. PR Sreejesh and Krishan Pathak will take up the goalkeeping duties, while Amit Rohidas, Jarmanpreet Singh, Sumit, Jugrag and Harmanpreet make up the core of the defence. Hardik Singh, Vivek Sagar Prasad and Manpreet Singh headline the midfield lineup. Mandeep Singh, Akashdeep Singh and Sukhjeet Singh will lead the forward line. Ahead of the tournament’s, let’s take sneak peek into it, starting with the teams participating. Which are the teams that will participate in Asian Champions Trophy? A total of six teams — Hosts India, Pakistan, Malaysia, South Korea, China and Japan will participate in the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy. What is the format of the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy? The Asian Champions Trophy will be played in a round-robin format, where all the teams play the other five teams once. The top four teams advance to the semi-finals, and the winners of the semi-finals will play in the final on 12 August. Where will the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy take place? All matches of the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy will take place at the Major Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium in Chennai. Complete schedule of 2023 Asian Champions Trophy (All timings IST): 3 August Korea vs Japan (4 pm) Malaysia vs Pakistan (6.15 pm) India vs China (8.30 pm) 4 August Korea vs Pakistan (4 pm) China vs Malaysia (6.15 pm) India vs Japan (8.30 pm) 6 August China vs Korea (4 pm) Pakistan vs Japan (6.15 pm) Malaysia vs India (8.30 pm) 7 August Japan vs Malaysia (4 pm) Pakistan vs China (6.15 pm) India vs Korea (8.30 pm) 9 August Japan vs China (4 pm) Malaysia vs Korea (6.15 pm) India vs Pakistan (8.30 pm) 11 August Fifth place playoff match: Fifth ranked team vs sixth ranked team (3.30 pm) Semi-final 1: Second ranked team vs third ranked team (6 pm) Semi-final 2: First ranked team vs fourth ranked team (8.30 pm) 12 August Third place playoff match: Loser of SF 1 vs Loser of SF 2 (6 pm) Final: Winner of SF 1 vs Winner of SF 2 (8.30 pm) Where can I watch the matches of 2023 Asian Champions Trophy? All matches of the 2023 Asian Champions Trophy will be telecast across the Star Sports Network channels. It can also be live-streamed on the Disney +Hotstar app and website. India squad for 2023 Asian Champions Trophy: Goalkeepers: PR Sreejesh, Krishan Bahadur Pathak Defenders: Jarmanpreet Singh, Sumit, Jugraj Singh, Harmanpreet Singh (capt), Varun Kumar, Amit Rohidas Midfielders: Hardik Singh (vice-captain), Vivek Sagar Prasad, Manpreet Singh, Nilakanta Sharma, Shamsher Singh. Forwards: Akashdeep Singh, Mandeep Singh, Gurjant Singh, Sukhjeet Singh, S Karthi.