Asia Cup hockey 2022: India blank Indonesia 16-0; storm into second round

The Indian men’s hockey team beat hosts Indonesia 16-0 in their final match of the Asia Cup 2022 Pool A at the GBK Sports Complex Hockey Stadium in Jakarta and qualified for the second round of the continental meet.

India needed to win with a margin of 15 goals to leapfrog Pakistan on the second spot and make it to the next stage of the tournament. India’s win also means that Pakistan are out of contention to qualify for the next year’s world cup in India.

Japan, who beat both India and Pakistan, maintained the top position with three wins from three games. Indonesia, meanwhile, finished fourth with three losses from three games.

Dipsan Tirkey (41', 46', 58', 58') scored four goals while Sudev Belimagga (44' 45', 54') struck a hat-trick. Pawan Rajbhar (9’, 10’), Uttam Singh (13’), SV Sunil (18’, 23’) Nilam Sanjeep Xess (19’) Selvam Karthi (39’,55’) and Birendra Lakra (40’) scored the rest of the goals for India. Pawan Rajbhar was declared the man of the match.

The Indian hockey team, fourth in the world hockey rankings, started the game with the full press on the Indonesian goal. However, Indonesia, ranked 50th, resisted the Indian onslaught for nine minutes before Pawan Rajbhar opened the floodgates for the Tokyo 2020 bronze medallists with a double blow.

Pawan Rajbhar pounced on a defensive error from the hosts to get India on the scoresheet. India won the first penalty corner of the match in the next minute which Nilam Sanjeep Xess could not convert. However, Pawan Rajbhar was at the spot to tap in the rebound.

With the game being played mostly in the Indonesian half and inside their D, Uttam Singh then scored India’s third goal after a melee with two minutes left in the first quarter.

India began the second quarter with similar urgency. Though Indonesia found their first circle penetration in the second quarter, SV Sunil pumped in India’s fourth goal from the left in the 18th minute after a missed trap on the Indian penalty corner.

Nilam Sanjeep Xess then found India’s fifth goal through a powerful drive from the drag-flick in the next minute.

Indonesia substituted their goal-keeper Rumaropen Julius with Fajar Alam but the move could not stop the Indian juggernaut.

Four minutes later, Selvam Kathi’s pass from the left found the stick of the Indian vice-captain SV Sunil who scored his second goal of the day and made it 6-0 for India.

The final seven minutes of the second quarter yielded no goals for India despite committing the numbers forward.

India finished the first half leading Indonesia 6-0 and having 75 per cent of the possession. India also made 20 circle penetrations compared to Indonesia’s one.

The lull period continued for India till the 39th minute before Pawan Rajbhar outmuscled the Indonesian backline and provided Selvam Karthi with a square pass inside the D.

Selvam Karthi, who scored against Pakistan in the first game, tapped into the goal to make it 7-0.

The goal broke the shackles as India scored the next two goals in the space of three minutes. Indian captain Birendra Lakra first scored through a drag-flick and Dipsan Tirkey later slammed in the penalty stroke to bring India back into contention.

India missed multiple chances from thereon but in the dying seconds of the third quarter, Sudev Belimagga tapped in India’s 10th goal to bring the contest alive.

With five goals required in the last 15 minutes, India started brightly by scoring two goals in the first 90 seconds.

Sudev Belimagga made it 11-0 through a field goal and then Dipsan Tirkey completed his hat-trick through a drag-flick to put the second-round spot within grasp.

Goalkeeper Fajar Alam defended the Indonesian goal bravely for the next few minutes. However, India’s chase for the 13th goal bore fruit in the 54th minute with Sudev Belimagga’s hat-trick.

India then came within touching distance with Selvam Karthi’s reverse hit to make it 14-0.

Dipsan Tirkey then scored the next two goals to help India overtake Pakistan on goal difference and qualify for the next round, the Super4s.