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IMAGE: Harmanpreet Singh's impressive skills have landed him the highest-paying contract in Soorma. Photograph: Kind Courtesy Hockey India/X Indian men's hockey Olympic medal winning captain Harmanpreet Singh's services were secured by Soorma Hockey Club for the upcoming season of the Hockey India League (HIL) for a massive Rs 78 lakh, becoming the most expensive player in the league.
The auctions for the competition, making its return after seven years, are taking place from October 13 to 15.
A brilliant drag-flicker and a man known to deliver in the most clutch and tense moments, has signed with Soorma, with his skills making him the most expensive player in the competition. He has scored 205 goals in 234 appearances for the national senior side.
"THE BIGGEST CATCH! Harmanpreet Singh joins Soorma Hockey Club for Rs78L! A defensive rock and goal-scoring threat! Soorma's roster just got unstoppable! #HILisBack #HILPlayerAuction #HILMensAuction," posted the official X handle of HIL.
The revamped HIL 2024-25 will feature 8 men's teams and 6 women's teams, marking the first standalone women's league in the country that will run concurrently with the men's competition. In its previous edition back in 2017, Kalinga Lancers had become the champion, beating Dabang Mumbai for the title.
The league will get underway on December 28 with matches played in two venues -- Marang Gomke Jaipal Singh Astroturf Hockey Stadium in Ranchi, Jharkhand, and Birsa Munda Hockey Stadium in Rourkela, Odisha. The women's league will conclude on January 26, 2025 in Ranchi, while the men's final is slated for February 1, 2025 in Rourkela.