India defeat Sri Lanka to qualify for Semi-Finals

The Indian Men’s Hockey Team secured their berth in the Semi-Finals of the 18th Asian Games Jakarta-Palembang 2018 as they registered an emphatic 20-0 victory over Sri Lanka in their fifth and last Pool A encounter here at the Gelora Bung Karno Hockey Field today. India’s striker Akashdeep Singh (10’, 11’, 18’, 23’, 33’, 43’) scored six times for the World No. 5 team while Rupinder Pal Singh (2’, 52’, 53’), Harmanpreet Singh (6’, 22’, 33’), Mandeep Singh (36’, 44’, 59’), Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (58’,59’), Vivek Sagar Prasad (32’), Amit Rohidas (30’) and Dilpreet Singh (2’) also scored for the Indian team.

India’s quick start saw Harmanpreet Singh’s shot from their first PC come off a Sri Lankan defender on the line, which saw the umpire award a Penalty Stroke to the World No. 5 team in the 2nd minute. It was Rupinder Pal Singh who opened the scoring for India as he struck the ball towards the right of the Sri Lankan Goalkeeper TKH Hendeniya Mudiyanselage. The Indian team won another PC in the 5th minute, and this time Harmanpreet Singh struck the ball towards the Goalkeeper’s left, beating the Sri Lankan to give India a 2-0 lead. A third PC in the next minute meant that Amit Rohidas was denied from the spot by the first Sri Lankan rusher. In the 10th minute, Striker Akashdeep Singh also registered his name on the scoresheet as he took advantage of the inability of the Sri Lankan defence to clear the ball, putting the ball past the Goalkeeper from close range to make it 3-0 in India’s favour. The same minute saw Rupinder Pal Singh being denied by the Sri Lankan Goalkeeper as his shot towards the right corner was palmed away. However, Sri Lanka conceded a fourth goal in the 11th minute as Akashdeep Singh found himself in possession again and pushed the ball between the Goalkeeper’s legs from close range to score his second goal of the match. Even though the Indian team had more openings towards the closing stages of the first quarter, they ended the period with a four-goal lead.