The Hyderabad Sultans is the Indian Premier Hockey League team from

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...

of royal lineage, mixing tradition with modernity, they are the progressive nawabs. The squad is captained by

Sardara Singh Sardara Singh (born 15 July 1986), sometimes referred as Sardar Singh, is an Indian former professional field hockey player and captain of the Indian national team. He usually plays the center half position. Sardara became the youngest player t ...

since 2007–08 edition. They were winners of first

Premier Hockey League Premier Hockey League (PHL) was a professional field hockey league competition for clubs in the top division of the Indian hockey system. There were seven teams in the PHL. The competition was held every year from 2005 until 2008. History The ...

in 2005.Hyderabad Sultans win PHL
/ref>

History

Founding

The club was formed on the back grounds of inaugural

in year 2005. It started off with many host of hockey superstars from India and Pakistan. Sultans, led by ever-dependable

Dilip Tirkey Dilip Tirkey (born 25 November 1977), is a former Indian field hockey player, Politician and Sports Administrator. His former playing position was of full back. He was best known for his penalty corner hit. Dilip was one of the most ...

, were crowned the champions of the inaugural PHL at home. At the sprawling Gachibowli sports complex, Sultans came out as a surprise packet.

was at his best along with penalty corner specialist Sohail Abbas and Waseem Ahmad who helped the team score crucial wins with their combined moves in the first year. Sohail Abbas, along with

Len Aiyappa Len Aiyappa (born 31 March 1979) is an Indian professional field hockey player. He remained one of India's best drag-flickers until he retired from the national team following a fallout with the Indian Hockey Federation in 2006. He last played ...

of Hi-Fliers, became the joint top-scorers of the league.PHL 1 - 2005 Season Review
/ref>

Loss of form and players exodus (2006–2007)

In the second year too, Hyderabad Sultans played well and were in contention for the final berth even playing without star performers of 2005, Waseem Ahmad who left the team in 2006 but were edged out by Bangalore Lions on goal average. They won five out of the eight matches and had 13 points, just one less than the table toppers Chandigarh Dynamos and so Hyderabad Sultans finished third in league.PHL 2 - 2006 Season Review
/ref> In the third year, Hyderabad Sultans failed miserably winning just one match in the new format. They also lost their skipper

and many experienced players who joined Orissa Steelers as they were promoted to the Premier Division. Sultans ended at the bottom of table that season avoiding relegation as second division was scrapped.PHL 3 - 2007 Season Review
/ref>

Current (2008–present)

In the season of 2008 young

led the team. Saradara Singh along with his brother Didar Singh were the only experienced stars in the team but it had talented youngsters in Bikas Toppo and Pawal Lakra, who were capable of making inroads into any defence. They also depended on how K.M.Chengappa and Nitin Kumar help their forwards Didar Singh and

. The team had an emerging drag-flicker in Diwakar Ram, who carried the team's burden during the short corners. The player to watch out were upcoming Promod Kumar, who was the fulcrum of the team.

Adnan Maqsood Adnan Maqsood (born 12 January 1979) is a Pakistani field hockey player. He competed at the 2004 Summer Olympics and the 2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beiji ...

and Kamran Ahmed were the foreign players along with

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

goalkeeper Oscar Ter Weeme. The team also had a new coach in Madhukaran who was assisted by Alphonse Lazarus and they finished their campiange by finishing fourth in league, qualifying for play-off where they lost to Chandigarh Dynamos.PHL 4 League Standing

Gachibowli Hockey Stadium

Gachibowli Hockey Stadium is a

field hockey Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ...

stadium at

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

, India. It is the home of the Hyderabad Sultans of the

. It has a

seating capacity Seating capacity is the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, in terms of both the physical space available, and limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that ...

of 8,000 people.

Hyderabad Sultans season by season performance

Players

First-Team squad

As of PHL 4 – 2008.Current Hyderabad Sultans Squard
Note: List of player is obtained from PHL website. The list might change in the near future. Other important team personnel ; * Madhukaran (Chief Coach) * Alphonse Lazarus (Asst Coach) * CR Bheem Singh (Physical Trainer) * P.Kanthaiah (Manager)

Former players

PHL 4 - 2008 Season Sultans Team

Goal keepers

Club captains

International players

Club officials

Coaching and medical staff

; * Manager: P.Kanthaiah * Chief Coach: Madhukaran * Asst Coach: Alphonse Lazarus * Physical Trainer: CR Bheem Singh

Chief Coach history

Honours

Titles: 1 ** 2005

References

{{Hyderabad topics Field hockey clubs in India Premier Hockey League teams Sports clubs in India Sport in Telangana 2005 establishments in Andhra Pradesh