Asia Cup Hockey 2025 Day 7: India Crush China to Reach Final, South Korea Edge Malaysia

Chinese Taipei vs. Kazakhstan:

In a dead rubber between two teams who have not been at their best, it was Kazakhstan who came out on top after treating the fans to a ten goal thriller, in which Kazakhstan came back from behind to win their maiden game of the tournament.

At the initial stages of the game, it was Chinese Taipei who got their noses in front with Yu-Cheng Chang tucking home the ball. Kazakhstan began their comeback with Agymtay Duisengazy scoring for the Kazakhs, but little did he know that he would anchor Kazakhstan's victory against Chinese Taipei. The game went back and forth and by half time fans were treated with six goals with Chinese Taipei and Kazakhstan scoring three goals apiece. After long tournament runs, both the teams looked relatively tired but they continued to attack and get some goals under their belt after not scoring much in the earlier stages of the tournament. The third quarter ended in a stalemate with both the teams scoring once and keeping the game on a knife edge for the final quarter. In the final quarter Kazakhstan scored twice including one penalty stroke to win the game 6-4 and avoid the humiliation of finishing rock bottom in the tournament. Chinese Taipei on the other hand will look back on this tournament as a tournament to gather experience for their young and inexperienced squad.South Korea vs. Malaysia:

In what was probably the match of the tournament so far, both the teams started the game with all guns blazing and it was Malaysia who got their noses in front when Fitri Saari opened the scoring for them. Fitri Saari was suspended for the India game in the Super 4 pool, and how has Malaysia missed him. The first quarter belonged to Malaysia, who attacked relentlessly and won every other second ball. South Korea equalised when Hyeonhong Kim scored but Malaysia soon got their lead back when experienced Aiman Rozemi scored. Malaysia thought they put the game to bed when Syed Cholan scored via a penalty corner. But who knew we were in for a South Korean fightback story. South Korea kept on attacking and they continued to push the Malaysian defence inside their own half. Deep inside the third quarter Seyong Oh finally pulled one back and the fans prepared themselves for a massive final 15'. Malaysia put on a defensive low block for the final quarter. Jungjun Lee scored a massive goal and with the game being level, Malaysia head coach, Sarjit Kundan was absolutely furious with some of the refereeing decisions. After the game, we got hold of an angry Sarjit Kundan, he said, "If this kind of umpiring happens, I don't know what to say." before storming off the pitch. South Korea having got the equaliser and having realised that Malaysia have gone into a low block, looked for penalty corners rather than scoring field goals and their plan worked, when in the 51', they got a penalty corner and Hyeonhong Kim scored and sent South Korea into a lead for the first time in the match. South Korea for the final 9' of the match, went into a low block, frustrating Malaysia even more. They managed to nullify the danger of Malaysia's star men Akhimulla Anuar and Ashran Hamsani. Malaysia pushed for penalty corners when they realised they could not get field goals as they could see a sea of red shirts inside the South Korean D-Box. They managed three penalty corners in three minutes and Daehan Jang, South Korea's goalkeeper reacted brilliantly and saved goals and also South Korea's chances of going to the finals. South Korea now would closely observe the India vs. China game which was scheduled next, and hope India would pull off a victory.

India vs. China:

In a game where there really wasn't much on the line for India but China had everything to play for, India started the game strong when Shilanand Lakra opened the scoring in the 4' after a peach of a delivery from Jarmanpreet Singh came in. A minute later, India got a penalty corner and it was Dilpreet Singh who tucked the ball home and India were flying. India were relentless in the attack and they were not letting China beyond the centre line. It looked like India's early goal pushed China out of their comfort zone and it did not allow China to play their natural game of sitting at the back and absorb pressure and look to hit on the counter whenever there is a chance. India continued to press hard in the second quarter as well and in the 18', it was Mandeep Singh's turn to score after missing out on a couple of relatively simple opportunities. India finished the first half in a comfortable 3-0 lead. As the third quarter started, India refused to take their foot off the gas pedal as they continued to push China inside their half and China were clearly rattled by India's constant pushing. India again scored twice in quick succession when Rajkumar Pal scored and after a couple of minutes it was Sukhjeet Singh, who slotted the ball comfortably. The game was over by all accounts but India were not happy after five goals. In the final quarter, the Chinese team looked tired and were only happy to clear their lines. But India, again picked their moments and scored two goals in quick succession when Abhisekh decided to join the party. The game ended 7-0 in favour of India as they comfortably go on to the final. It was almost a men against boys affair with India totally outplaying China from start to finish. India will face South Korea in the final of the Asia Cup, Rajgir, Bihar, 2025. South Korea remain the only team that managed to avoid being defeated by India. China will now face Malaysia in the 3rd/4th place playoff on the 7th of September.