Harmanpreet Singh's Heroics Lead India to Victory over Pakistan in Asian Champions Trophy

Harmanpreet Singh led India to a narrow 2-1 win over Pakistan in the Hero Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament. With this victory, India continued their winning streak, marking their fifth consecutive win in the tournament. Despite Pakistan’s early lead, Harmanpreet's two penalty corners secured India's triumph.

Skipper Harmanpreet Singh continued his impressive form since the Paris Olympics, converting two penalty corners to lead India to a 2-1 victory over Pakistan in their final league match of the Hero Asian Champions Trophy hockey tournament on Saturday. This marked India's fifth consecutive win in the six-team round-robin competition.

Pakistan initially took the lead through Ahmad Nadeem in the 8th minute. However, Harmanpreet's penalty corners in the 13th and 19th minutes secured India's win against their arch-rivals. Both teams had already qualified for the semifinals, but the victory allowed India to maintain supremacy over Pakistan since 2016.

In other matches, Malaysia and Korea played to a 3-3 draw, and hosts China defeated Japan 2-0. India's semifinal opponent will be Korea, while Pakistan will face China. The first quarter of the Indo-Pak match saw intense action with Pakistan scoring first, but India demonstrated resilience and skill to clinch victory despite missing multiple penalty corner opportunities.

(With inputs from agencies.)