Kakamigahara Defending champions India survived a scare before Abhishek struck with just 45 seconds remaining to snatch a dramatic 4-3 victory over arch-rivals Pakistan and seal a place in the Asian Games men’s hockey final here on Thursday.
India will take on Malaysia, who beat South Korea in the other semifinal, in the gold medal contest on Saturday.
Harmanpreet converted two perfectly executed penalty corners in the 5th and 13th minutes, while Sukhjeet Singh scored a field goal in the 23rd minute. Abhishek scored the winning goal for India from a field play in the final minute of the game.
Pakistan’s goals were scored by Abu Mahmood (30th minute), Hannan Shahid (45th) and Waheed Rana (49th). The defending champions looked set for a comfortable semifinal win after captain Harmanpreet’s brace and Sukhjeet Singh’s field strike put them firmly in control. But a stunning second-half collapse allowed Pakistan to claw their way back as they scored three goals and push India to the brink of an embarrassing defeat before Abhishek’s late strike rescued the team. India, who had dominated the opening half, inexplicably retreated into their shell after the break, surrendering control of the midfield and allowing Pakistan’s young forwards to dictate the pace and flow of the game. With their defence under pressure and their attacking threat blunted, the Indians were left scrambling to protect their lead. Just as the contest appeared headed for a shootout, Abhishek found the decisive touch, with his effort taking a deflection off Pakistan defender Sufiyan beating goalkeeper Ali Raza to send India into the final. Agencies
India cannot afford mistakes, says Harmanpreet
#Kakamigahara (Japan)
India captain Harmanpreet Singh was clear about one thing after the defending champions survived a Pakistan fightback to reach the Asian Games hockey final — against a team of such calibre, there is no room for mistakes, especially when tempers flare and emotions threaten to take over.
“We are here to play hockey. If we want to fight, we have to be calm. They were trying to distract us. Our focus is on the game. We don’t want to fight. I think we handled it well. They punished us,” Harmanpreet said after the match.
The captain acknowledged that India had largely stuck to their game plan and started strongly, creating chances and converting them into goals. “We stuck to the plan most of the time. We started well, created opportunities and scored good goals. We made the same mistakes in the second half. It was a good opportunity for us, and we were smart. We could score goals,” he said.