Asian Champions Trophy 2023: The Asian Championship hockey tournament has kickstarted in Chennai on August 3 and will end on August 12. The tournament features six teams from Asia participating in the event.
The tournament follows a league knockout format where the top four teams from the group stages will play in the knockout stages. And India might have suffered a major blip on their road to the knockout stages.
After winning their first match comfortably against China with a scoreline of 7-2, but were held to a draw of 1-1 against Japan on August 4. It was a thrilling match where any side could have taken over. But in the end, both teams shared a point, which was fair considering our match.
A Thrilling Draw
The first quarter was filled with exciting attacks from both teams. But none of the teams could find the back of the net. India won eight penalty corners in the first quarter but failed to convert any of those.
The second quarter saw Japan take a lead in the 28th minute from a penalty corner as Ken Nagayoshi converted the chance. The teams went into halftime with India trailing but adamant about returning to the game.
India equalized in the 43rd minute with a penalty corner which captain Harmanpreet Singh converted. India failed to capitalize on the 15 penalty corners they were awarded during the match, so they had to settle for a draw.
Upcoming Fixtures
India will face Malaysia and Korea next on the 6th and 7th of August, respectively. The headline clash against Pakistan will be on 9th August. Coincidentally, India and Pakistan have won the tournament most times.
Both countries have won it three times and want to increase that tally. India is sitting in second position with 4 points in two matches, while Pakistan has lost one, drew one out of their two matches, and is in 5th position in Asian Champions Trophy 2023.
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