India held to 2-2 draw by Korea in Super 4s opener at Hero Men’s Asia Cup in Rajgir

Rajgir: The Indian men’s hockey team opened their Super 4s campaign at the Hero Men’s Asia Cup in Rajgir, Bihar, with a hard-fought 2-2 draw against Korea on Wednesday. Hardik Singh (8’) and Mandeep Singh (53’) were on target for India, while Jihun Yang (12’) and Hyeonhong Kim (14’) struck for the defending champions.

The start of the match was delayed due to rain but India made the brighter opening, pressing high and earning two early penalty corners. Their dominance paid off in the 8th minute when Hardik Singh broke through the midfield, dribbled past the Korean defence and slotted home to give India the lead.

Korea, however, responded swiftly. A penalty stroke awarded after a foul by Jugraj Singh allowed Jihun Yang to equalise in the 12th minute. Just two minutes later, Hyeonhong Kim’s dragflick from a penalty corner gave Korea the advantage.

India kept Korea under pressure in the second quarter but the equaliser proved elusive, with Korean goalkeeper and defenders standing firm. In the third quarter, India created a flurry of chances through Manpreet Singh, Abhishek and Sukhjeet Singh but failed to convert. Harmanpreet Singh also saw his dragflick denied by a defender on the line.

The breakthrough finally came in the 53rd minute when Sukhjeet Singh pierced through the Korean defence to find Mandeep Singh, who tapped in to level the score 2-2. Both sides had penalty corners in the closing stages but neither managed to clinch the winner.

India will next face Malaysia in their second Super 4s Pool match on Thursday, September 4, at 7:30 PM IST.

Other results:

Japan beat Chinese Taipei 2-0

Malaysia defeated China 2-0

All matches are being broadcast live on the Sony Sports Network. International fans in the USA, UK, Europe and North America can watch the tournament live on Watch.Hockey.