India thrash Uzbekistan 16-0 to kickstart their hockey campaign in style at the Hangzhou Asian Games
The Indian men's hockey team is chasing the gold medal at Hangzhou that will confirm their place in the next year's Paris Olympics.
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Indian men's hockey team (Via Open source)
The Indian men’s hockey team seemed like on a mission possessed as they demolished Uzbekistan 16-0 to open their campaign in a fine fashion at the 2022 Asian Games. The gulf of talent between the two teams was evident from the fact that India didn’t even require the services of their captain and ace drag-flicker Harmanpreet Singh throughout the match.
For India, as many as three players scored their hat-tricks with Lalit Kumar Upadhyay and Varun Kumar top-scoring with four goals each to their names. Mandeep Singh was the other player to score three goals. The other goalscorers included Abhishek, Shamsher Singh, Amit Rohidas, Sukhjeet Singh and Sanjay (1 goal each). It was a total carnage from the Indian side as there was hardly any attack from the opponent side as most of the match was played in Uzbekistan’s half itself.
India began slowly, as only 2 goals were scored in the first quarter. However, they got into their grooves as the match progressed, which is evident from the fact that the next three quarters produced 5,5 and 4 goals, respectively for the World No.3 side.
It was a good outing for the Indian side and their coach Craig Fulton would be a happy man as his side has begun on a convincing note. The team looks set to counter tougher challenges ahead.
India next faces Singapore in their Pool A match
Team India will next take on Singapore on Tuesday and will look to continue to build momentum for their forthcoming matches against reigning Asian Games gold medalist Japan and arch-rivals Pakistan, the two toughest games in the group stage. Still, the defending Olympic bronze medalists are expected to march into the semifinals as table-toppers.
Indian team is not only eyeing the top spot in their group but is truly hoping to leave Hangzhou with the gold medal that they failed to grab in the last edition of the Games. The gold not only will reaffirm their status as numero uno in Asia but will also guarantee their place in next year’s Paris Olympics.
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Kushagra Gupta
(349 Articles Published)