Harpal Singh Bedi
Kuala Lumpur, 5th December : Riding on forward Araijeet Singh Hundal’s hat-trick, two-time champion India overpowered spirited Korea 4-2 to open their campaign in Hockey Men’s Junior World Cup Malaysia on a victorious note at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur on Tuesday.
Araijeet (11′, 16′, 41′) , Amandeep (30′) scored for the winners while Dohyun Lim (38′) and Minkwon Kim (45′) reduced the margin for the losers .
In another pool C match, strong contender and world no5 Spain overwhelmed Canada 7-0. The top two teams from the group will progressto the quarter-finals.
India, third in the junior hockey rankings, started the match on an aggressive with a high tempo but the Korean defence limited their circle penetrations in the first 10 minutes. However, world No. 11 South Korea struggled to mount attacks at the other end.
India earned its first penalty corner which was neatly converted by vice-captain Araijeet Singh Hundal in the 11th minute after several passes inside the circle.
In the 16th minute, Boby Singh Dhami setup Hundal with effective stickwork along the baseline followed by a well-executed lob pass. Hundal made the most of the opportunity from the front of the goal and doubled India’s lead with a field goal.
South Korea started moving the ball with more urgency and earned their first penalty corner in the 29th minute. However, it was India who got the goal at the other end on a counter-attack through Amandeep.
India had eight shots on goal in the first half while South Korea had just one on target in the first half.
South Korea applied pressure on India in the third quarter and earned back-to-back penalty corners in the 38th minute. Dohyun Lim then struck past the Indian goalkeeper from a tight angle to make it 3-1. However, Hundal’s third goal of the night three minutes later restored India’s three-goal advantage.
A green card to captain Uttam Singh and a yellow to Rohit reduced India to nine men in the 42nd minute. Korea earned a penalty corner in the final minute of the third quarter which was converted by Minkwon Kim.
Both sides matched each other’s play in the final quarter but neither side could score. Despite India having more circle penetrations and better possession in the match, the Asian champions surprisingly conceding six penalty corners while earning just two.
India had beaten Korea 9-1 in the Junior Asian Cup early this year.
The men in blue will play Spain in their second group C match on Thursday.