The Indian men’s hockey team rose like a Phoenix in the 4th quarter displaying a dominant performance avenging their group defeat as they defeated Japan 2-1 in the opening match of the Super 4s stage of the Asia Cup, here in Jakarta on Saturday.
Birendra lakra- led Indian squad took the lead in the first quarter itself when Manjeet scored a field goal in the seventh minute of the game. However, the opponents equalized the score in the second quarter, Subsequently, the third and fourth quarters restored the charge to the men in blue via another field goal in the 34th minute clocking 2-1.
Despite facing a below-par Indonesia in its final group league game, the young side coached by Sardar Singh must be lauded for being able to score a whopping 16 goals in just an hour. It was one more than what India required to put a final nail in Pakistan’s coffin as far as harbouring World Cup qualification hopes were concerned. Both India and Pakistan finished on four points each in Pool A behind Japan but the defending champions qualified for the next round due to a better goal difference (+1)