Hockey World Cup 2018: 5 standout players for India in the pool stages

#3 Lalit Upadhyay

Lalit has been in prime form at Bhubaneswar

Lalit has been part of the set up for several years now but the Indian team is now benefiting from the incredible skills of the 24-year-old striker.

Lalit who was part of the Indian team that took part in the Commonwealth Games at Gold Coast was not initially picked to travel to Breda - but an injury to Sumit Kumar meant that the Varanasi lad not only made it to the Champions Trophy but was a key member of the squad that won the silver medal.

Lalit who displayed his spectacular ball-control at Jakarta, by picking up an overhead pass midair, and tapping it in first-time, has begun well at Bhubaneswar.

A goal against South Africa was the icing on the cake but Lalit was also responsible for setting up some crafty moves.

Two goals in the final quarter of the match against Canada was proof enough that Lalit's scoring abilities are very much intact, just as his knack of picking out his teammates with some deft precision passing.