India stormed into the final of the men’s Asian Champions Trophy with an 8-1 thrashing of South Korea in the semifinal at the Olympian Balbir Singh International Hockey Stadium in Mohali on 4 November. The defending champions, unbeaten throughout the tournament, will face Japan in Thursday’s final at 7 pm, chasing a record-extending sixth title in front of their home supporters.
The scoreline was emphatic, and the manner of it even more so. Shilanand Lakra opened the scoring in the fourth minute and added a second in the 13th, while captain Harmanpreet Singh netted his 10th goal of the tournament in the ninth minute. By half-time, India led 6-1, with Sukhjeet Singh and Dilpreet Singh also on the scoresheet, the latter scoring twice, in the 21st and 25th minutes. Angad Bir Singh added a seventh in the 36th minute, and Vivek Sagar Prasad completed the rout in the 54th.
It was India’s second eight-goal win over the same opponents in three days. In their final league match, India had beaten South Korea 8-0, and the semifinal followed the same pattern: early pressure, a flood of goals, and a Korean side with no answer to India’s pace and penalty-corner threat. The hosts finished the league stage unbeaten with five wins from five, and they have carried that form into the knockouts without a dip.
The win takes India into a record-extending seventh Asian Champions Trophy final, and their third in a row. As five-time champions, they are already the tournament’s most successful team, and a sixth title on Thursday would stretch that record further. The final will also be a first: India and Japan have not previously met in an Asian Champions Trophy final.
Japan reached the final the hard way, beating Malaysia 5-3 in a penalty shootout after the first semifinal finished goalless through 60 minutes of regulation time. Japan converted all five of their shootout attempts, holding their nerve where Malaysia faltered. They will arrive in the final as underdogs, but a side that has already survived a shootout and that defends in numbers cannot be dismissed.
For India, the challenge on Thursday is as much mental as tactical. A team that has scored 16 goals in two matches against Korea must guard against complacency against a different kind of opponent. Japan are unlikely to leave the spaces Korea did, and the final may be decided by penalty corners, by Harmanpreet’s drag-flicking, and by India’s ability to stay patient if the goals do not come early.
The Mohali crowd, which roared India home in the semifinal with fireworks lighting up the venue at the final hooter, will again be a factor. This was the stadium’s first international match in the tournament, and the hosts have made it a fortress. A home final, against a team India will expect to beat, with a record sixth title at stake, is the kind of occasion that can either inspire or burden a side.
India have been the tournament’s dominant force from the first match, and the semifinal was their most complete performance yet. One more win, on Thursday evening, and the dominance becomes a title. Japan stand in the way, and after two eight-goal victories, India will believe that nothing can stop them now.
