Continuing their glorious run of form, defending champions India recorded their second consecutive win at the Asian Champions Trophy by registering a dominant 5-1 victory against Japan at Moqi, China on Monday.
Sukhjeet Singh (2′, 60′) scored a double in India’s win while Abhishek (3′), Sanjay (17′) and Uttam Singh (54′) scored a goal each while Kazumasa Matsumoto (41′) scored the lone goal for Japan.
India were quick to get underway with a brilliant goal by Sukhjeet Singh in the second minute. It was Sanjay, hovering on the right side of the circle, to lob in a cross pass that was swiftly deflected by Sukhjeet. Indian forwards extended the lead to 2-0 in the following minute with Abhishek dribbling past multiple Japanese defenders to drive it around the goalkeeper to score.
The onslaught continued in the second quarter with Sanjay converting a splendid penalty corner in the 17th minute. With 3-0 lead on the board, India were in a comfortable position while Japan tried to shake off the early nerves and bounce back in the game. They made quick amends in their attack to fetch a PC in the 21st minute.
But Japan’s dragflick was finely blocked by Indian rushers, enabling their team to launch a quick counter attack. Attacking from the right, Jugraj Singh got a nice turn, and won a free hit. After a flurry of swift short passes, Indian forwards missed the goal mouth by inches. With one goal coming in this quarter, India completely dominated with 67 per cent ball possession that led to 11 circle entries and three shots on goal.
Returning from the 10-minute half-time break, India looked to keep up the momentum. They played patiently, with discipline, to launch their first attack in the third quarter but Japan did well in winning the ball back. They did well to build on a structured attack that eventually led to a field goal in the 41st minute by Kazumasa Matsumoto. India goalie Krishan Bahadur Pathak could do little to stop Matsumoto from scoring that one.
Only minutes earlier, there was a brilliant opportunity for India but Vivek Sagar fell inches short of a fourth goal.
A fourth goal eventually came through for India, thanks to good stick work by Jarmanpreet Singh who assisted Uttam Singh from the baseline to convert a fine field goal. This left India with a comfortable 4-1 lead in the 54th minute. Sukhjeet added another goal to his name in the 60th minute after a fine assist by Abhishek to end the match on a high and lead the points table at no.1 spot with consecutive victories.
“It was a complete team effort today and we stuck to the basics. We produced a good attack and ensured we were on target,” said Abhishek after being adjudged the Hero of the Match.
India began their campaign in the tournament with a 3-0 win against hosts China on Sunday.