Asian Champions Trophy 2023: Five-star India thump Malaysia to go top of points table

Five different players netted for the Men in Blue in their victory.

A determined Indian men’s hockey team beat Malaysia 5-0 to climb up the points table in the ongoing Asian Champions Trophy 2023 here on Sunday. Playing in front of a packed home crowd at the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium, the hosts lived up to the billing producing exciting brand of hockey from hooter-to-hooter. 

It was a memorable outing for Harmanpreet Singh who achieved a personal milestone of scoring 150th international goal with a 42nd minute PC while Karthi Selvam (15′), Hardik Singh (32′), Gurjant Singh (53′) and Jugraj Singh (54′) contributed to India’s win.

Coming into this game with two wins in a row, a 3-1 win against Pakistan and 5-1 win over China, Malaysia looked to remain ahead of India in the Asian Champions Trophy 2023 points table. But India played with aggression and the right intent to score at regular intervals. 

Within the first five minutes of the match, experienced forward Akashdeep Singh built a strong attack slotting the ball to Vivek Sagar Prasad, who smartly tackled a couple of Malaysian defenders to assist Sukhjeet. Though the striker took a strong shot on goal, his flick missed the target.

Just minutes before the first quarter whistle, India’s first goal came through local hero Karthi Selvam. It was skipper Harmanpreet Singh who made a brilliant long, grounded pass to Karthi setting him up for a fine field goal from the top of the circle. 

Cheered on by home crowd, Karthi set up India for a second goal in the second quarter when he helped the team earn their first PC of the game. But India, could not capitalize after a poor execution. The following minutes saw Malaysia push for a goal and their experienced Faiz Jali even took a potential shot on goal but a good tackle by Amit Rohidas denied them a chance.

After a goalless second quarter, India took a 2-0 lead in the 32nd minute — thanks to a Hardik Singh after his skipper fetched the team’s third PC. Though Harmanpreet’s flick was saved by Malaysia goalie, a rebound was picked up well by Hardik to deflect it into the post.  The team extended their lead to 3-0 when Harmanpreet scored in the 42nd minute.

In a comfortable 3-0 lead, India looked to finish well. Working on a disciplined attack, India upped the pressure on Malaysia with a flurry of goals. Gurjant Singh (53′) and Jugraj Singh (54′) scored back-to-back goals to put India ahead by 5-0. The Indian defenders did well to keep India in the lead till the final hooter.

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