Indian men’s hockey team slammed six goals in the final quarter for a crushing 16-0 victory against Indonesia in Asia Cup on May 26.
India needed to win the Pool A contest by at least a 15-0 margin to qualify and the young players of the side delivered under pressure. Both India and Pakistan finished on four points each in Pool A behind Japan but the defending champion qualified for the Super 4s due to better goal difference (1).
Other teams in super 4s
India, being the hosts, will play the World Cup next year and hence Hockey India decided to send young players to this tournament for exposure. Along with India , Japan, Malaysia and South Korea are the other teams who qualified for super 4s stage.
The next match if India with Japan is on May 28.
Pawan Rajbhar’s aggressive effort in the Hero Asia Cup 2022 assures India’s victory over Indonesia. SV Sunil, Pawan Rajbhar, and Karthi Selvam each scored a brace, while India’s other goal scorers were Uttam Singh and Nilam Sanjeep Xess.
Unbeatable goals of India
India won the first penalty corner of the match in the next minute which Nilam Sanjeep Xess could not convert. Uttam Singh then scored India’s third goal after a melee with two minutes left in the first quarter. SV Sunil made India’s fourth goal from the left in the 18th minute after a missed trap on the Indian penalty corner. Nilam Sanjeep Xess then found India’s fifth goal through a powerful drive from the drag-flick in the next minute. Four minutes later Indian vice-captain SV Sunil scored his second goal of the day and made it 6-0 for India.
In the last seven minutes of the second quarter, India could not managed to score goals. India made 20 circle penetrations while Indonesia made only one. India missed multiple chances but in the dying seconds of the third quarter, Sudev Belimagga tapped in India’s 10th goal to bring the contest alive. When five goals required in the last 15 minutes, India scored two goals in the first 90 seconds. Sudev Belimagga and Dipsan Tirkey completed their hat- tricks and made it 13-0 for India. India then came within touching distance with Selvam Karthi’s reverse hit to make it 14-0. Following, Dipsan Tirkey then scored the next two goals to help India overtake Pakistan on goal difference and qualify for the next round, the Super4s.
