Asian Games 2026: India beat Japan 2-0 to reach men’s hockey semifinals
Defending champions India secured their place in the men’s hockey semifinals at the Asian Games after defeating hosts Japan 2-0 in a closely contested Pool A match on Saturday.
The victory was India’s fourth straight in the competition, keeping their unbeaten record intact. Earlier, India had recorded emphatic wins over Indonesia (13-1), Sri Lanka (16-1) and South Korea (8-2).
Abhishek opened the scoring with a field goal in the 15th minute before captain Harmanpreet Singh doubled India’s advantage by converting a penalty corner in the 40th minute.
Japan matched India’s intensity during the opening two quarters and played an aggressive game. The hosts enjoyed around 60 per cent possession in the first quarter, but India created greater pressure in the attacking third and went into half-time with a 1-0 lead.
Japan briefly thought it had equalised from a penalty corner in the 10th minute, but the goal was ruled out after the umpires determined that the ball had struck an Indian player’s foot first.
India eventually broke the deadlock through Abhishek and defended a second Japanese penalty corner soon afterwards. Harmanpreet then converted India’s fifth penalty corner with a powerful low flick to the right of the Japanese goalkeeper.
India dominated possession in the final quarter and earned four penalty corners in quick succession, but could not add to their lead as Japan’s defence held firm.
Despite the win, India’s penalty-corner conversion will remain a concern ahead of the knockout stage. The team earned 10 penalty corners but converted only one.
India will complete their Pool A campaign against Bangladesh on September 28 before turning their attention to the semifinals.
with inputs from PTI
