Prolific raider Pardeep Narwal and former Indian kabaddi team captain Deepak Niswas Hooda did not make the cut.
Star raiders Naveen Kumar and Pawan Sehrawat will lead the Indian team at the Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023 to be held in Busan, Republic of Korea next month.
India named a 12-member kabaddi team for the continental kabaddi event, which will be played after a gap of six years from June 27-30.
Pardeep Narwal, the all-time leading raider in the popular Pro Kabaddi League, has not been named in the squad. All-rounder Deepak Niwas Hooda, former captain of the Indian kabaddi team, has also been left out.
The trials to select the Indian kabaddi team for the Asian Kabaddi Championship took place at the Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna, Bihar last week.
Surender Gill, Surender Nada, Girish Maruti Ernak, Siddharth Desai, Maninder Singh, Ravinder Pahal and Mahender Singh were some of the other notable names who did not make the Indian squad.
Arjun Deshwal, the top raider from PKL season 9, will bolster the attack along with seasoned raiders Naveen Kumar and Pawan Sehrawat.
Pawan Sehrawat will be returning from an injury that sidelined him from the PKL last season.
The defence will be propped up by veteran Surjeet Singh and Nitesh Kumar.
Other notable players to make the kabaddi team are defenders Sunil Kumar, Parvesh Bhainswal and Vishal Bhardwaj along with all-rounder Nitin Rawal.
The Indian kabaddi team will be managed by former national coach Bhaskaran Edachery. Ashan Kumar and Sanjeev Kumar have been named as coaches.
The Indian kabaddi team is the most successful side in the history of the Asian Kabaddi Championship, winning seven gold medals from the eight editions played so far.
India are the defending champions having beaten Pakistan in the final in 2017 in Gorgan, Iran.
Asian Kabaddi Championship 2023: Team India – full squad
Indian kabaddi team: Arjun Deshwal, Naveen Kumar, Sachin, Aslam Inamdar, Mohit Goyat, Sunil Kumar, Parvesh Bhainswal, Nitin Rawal, Nitesh Kumar, Surjeet Singh, Vishal Bhardwaj, Pawan Sehrawat
Stand-by players: Vijay Malik, Shubham Shinde
Coaches: Ashan Kumar, Sanjeev Kumar
Manager: Bhaskaran Edachery
