Bhubaneswar, Aug 16 (IANS): The India Rugby U20 Men’s team is scheduled to participate at the upcoming Asia Rugby U20 Championship in Kathmandu, Nepal on August 19-20.

The squad was announced earlier today and Ganesh Majhi was named the captain of the 12 member Indian team.

“The Indian men's sevens team is in the process of rebuilding. The search is to constantly look for the three golden qualities of a rugby player. Courage under pressure, aggression in attack and defence, and communicating with the team throughout the game. We believe the players that have been selected in this Indian U20 team possess these qualities,” said Rahul Bose, President of the Indian Rugby Football Union.

The complete squad consists of Raj Kumar, Vijay Annabatthini, Tejas Patil, Ganesh Majhi, Arjun Mahato, Harsh Raj, Vidyanand Kumar, Mangal Soren, Monu, Ashok Hasdah, Asis Sabar, and Anuj Gaur. The coaches and technical staff travelling with the team include Juandre Naude (Head Coach), Vikas Khatri (Asst. Coach and current India 15’s Rugby captain), Abdul Wahidkhan (Physiotherapist) and Sourojit Ghosh (General Manager – High Performance, Indian Rugby Football Union).

The team leaves for Nepal on 15 August 2023 and is aiming to better their previous standing and vie for a place on the podium. Their biggest challenge comes in the form of defending champions, UAE and close competition from formidable teams such as Uzbekistan and Malaysia, whom the men from India are looking to topple this time around.

“I am extremely honoured and grateful to be given the responsibility of being the captain for the Indian U20 men’s team, that shall represent the country at the Asia Rugby U20 Championship. I am looking forward to the event. Our team has trained exceptionally well, we are ready to take on the challenge to compete in Nepal. This is an opportunity for us to continue to improve our game at the international stage, and keep moving up in the rankings,” signed off Ganesh Majhi, Captain, Indian U20 Men’s Rugby team.