India hockey player Arjun Halappa was busy trying to get a good deal from a retail outlet in New Delhi last evening oblivious to the fact that he's already bagged one of the best deals of his life, having just been made captain of the national team. <table style="width: 175px; height: 42px" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="175" align="right" border="1"> <tbody> <tr> <td><img alt="" src="/imagedata/2011/apr/halappa.jpg" border="0" /></td></tr> <tr> <td> Arjun Halappa</td></tr></tbody></table>The 30-year-old Air-India midfielder, who takes over the reins from Rajpal Singh, will lead India at the upcoming Sultan Azlan Shah Cup to be played at Ipoh, Malaysia from May 5-15. "I had no clue (about the captaincy news)... I was just shopping with my cousin here in Delhi and suddenly I've been receiving congratulatory calls and messages about it," Halappa told MiD DAY yesterday. "It's a honour to lead the country. I've been playing hockey at the highest level for over a decade now and though some may feel that captaincy has come a little late, I'd say it's better late than never. It almost feels like a lucky draw because I was never expecting it," added the Coorgi, who has an impressive 201 international caps to his name. Speaking of his immediate task on hand, Halappa did not to promise the world. "We have done well at the Azlan Shah in the past (India have won the Cup five times and were declared joint winners with South Korea last year when the final was abandoned due to rain). However, this time round we will be missing a number of key players. "Rajpal and Tushar (Khandker) are injured while two very important players, midfielder Sardar Singh and drag-flicker Sandeep Singh are not in the line-up (Hockey India's disciplinary committee decided not to consider the duo for selection after they failed to report to the camp citing international club engagements for which they did not procure an NOC from the national body). But this will be a good learning for a number of younger players, who will make it to the team as a result," said Halappa. A preparatory camp is currently on at the Dhyan Chand National Stadium in New Delhi. Out of 45 players, 18 will be picked for the tournament that features seven teams including world champions Australia, Great Britain, South Korea, New Zealand, Pakistan, India and hosts Malaysia.

India hockey player Arjun Halappa was busy trying to get a good deal from a retail outlet in New Delhi last evening oblivious to the fact that he's already bagged one of the best deals of his life, having just been made captain of the national team

Arjun surprised at being named hockey captain

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Arjun surprised at being named hockey captain

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