Moqi (China), Sep 13 (IANS) India’s junior men’s hockey team won a record-extending sixth Asia Cup title after outclassing South Korea in the final 4-1 at the Moqi Training Base here on Sunday.
The Indian men’s side won the continental title for the fourth straight time and also booked their spot for the FIH Junior Hockey World Cup. The Indians dominated the contest against the fellow Asian side as Ajeet Yadav, Anmol Ekka, Prabhdeep Singh and Ashu Maurya scored for India, while Lee Minhyeok was the only goal-scorer for the Korean side.
Yadav opened the scoring sheet as early as the ninth minute before Ekka doubled the lead with a 13th-minute strike to put India 2-0 up at the end of the opening quarter.
Prabhdeep sounded the board in the 21st minute as India kept the dominance intact and went into the half-time break with more than an arm’s distance from the Korean side at 3-0 up.
It needed something special for a comeback from the 2000 champions, but they could not inspire a comeback as Maurya scored another for India in the 50th minute to give them a huge 4-0 lead with only 10 minutes remaining.
Minhyeok then pulled one back for the Koreans in the 54th minute, but his lone strike could not do the damage as India went on to see off the contest 4-1 and win the continental title for the sixth time.
India have now also won the Junior Hockey Asia Cup for a fourth consecutive time, breaking their tie with Pakistan for three straight titles. The Indian team won the 2015, 2023 and 2024 titles before this recent triumph.
India were already the most successful team in the history of the continental event, with Pakistan a distant second, having won three titles from 1988 to 1196. Korea won one title in 2000, while Malaysia won once in 2012.
Earlier, India’s women’s team also won the Women’s Junior Hockey Asia Cup after beating China 1-0 in the final. This was India’s third straight title, which ties them with China and South Korea as the most successful women’s teams in the competition.
–IANS
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