India on rampage, rout Asiad champs Japan 9-0

Muscat, October 21 

The Indian men’s hockey team responded to its coach’s demand for better finishing with a 9-0 hammering of Asian Games champions Japan, making it three wins out of three in the Asian Champions Trophy here today.

After India’s 3-1 win over Pakistan yesterday, coach Harendra Singh had said he was concerned with “our finishing”. “We missed a few chances. We are taking too much time to make decisions. That’s where we need to sharpen up,” he said.  

A day later, his players responded in style. India started the goal fest in the fourth minute and pumped in their last goal three minutes from the final hooter. Lalit Upadhyay (4th, 45th minutes), Harmanpreet Singh (17th, 21st) and Mandeep Singh (49th, 57th) scored braces, while Gurjant Singh (8th), Akashdeep Singh (36th) and Kothajit Singh (42nd) added one each.

It was another dominant performance by the world No. 5 side, enjoying more than 60 percent of possession in the opposition’s half. The difference was visible as the world No. 16 Japan struggled to match the young Indian team’s speed. 

India next face Asian Games finalists Malaysia on Tuesday. They sit on top of the table with nine points and a positive goal difference of 22. — Agencies