Men's Hockey Junior Asia Cup 2023: India drawn with Pakistan in Pool A
The junior Asia Cup will be held from May 23 to June 1 in Oman. The Women’s Junior Asia Cup is scheduled in Japan from June 2 to 11.
Hockey
India have been drawn in Pool A with arch-rivals Pakistan for the Men’s Hockey Junior Asia Cup 2023, to be held from May 23 to June 1, 2023 in Salalah, Oman.
The Asian Hockey Federation has also announced that the Women’s Hockey Junior Asia Cup 2023 will be held from June 2 to 11 in Kakamigahara, Japan.
A total of 10 nations will participate in the men’s Junior Asia Cup hockey tournament. Besides the Indian men’s hockey team, Bangladesh, Chinese Taipei, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Oman, Pakistan, Thailand and Uzbekistan are in fray.
The top five teams - India, Pakistan, Japan, Korea and Malaysia - got an automatic qualification based on their world rankings. Bangladesh, Oman, Thailand, Uzbekistan and Chinese Taipei qualified from the Men’s Junior AHF Cup held in Muscat in January.
The top three teams from the tournament will qualify for the FIH Men’s Junior Hockey World Cup 2023, which will be held in Kuala Lumpur from December 5 to 16. For being the hosts, Malaysia have qualified automatically.
India and Pakistan along with Japan, Thailand, and Chinese Taipei will form Pool A.
Pool B will comprise of South Korea, Malaysia, Oman, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan.
India have reached the finals of the tournament five times, winning it thrice (2004, 2008, 2015) and finishing as runners-up twice (1996, 2000).
Men’s Junior Asia Cup 2023 groups
Pool A: India, Pakistan, Japan, Thailand, and Chinese Taipei
Pool B: South Korea, Malaysia, Oman, Bangladesh, and Uzbekistan
Meanwhile, the Women’s Junior Asia Cup will also be a 10-team tournament. India are placed in Pool A along with Chinese Taipei, Korea, Malaysia and Uzbekistan.
Pool B comprises of China, Hong Kong China, Indonesia, Japan and Kazakhstan.
The top five teams India, China, Korea, Japan and Malaysia got an automatic qualification based on their world rankings while Kazakhstan, Hong Kong China, Chinese Taipei, Uzbekistan and Indonesia qualified via the Women’s Junior AHF Cup held in Taldykorgan Kazakhstan in October 2022.
The top three teams will qualify for the 2023 Women's FIH Hockey Junior World Cup scheduled from December 6 to 17 in Santiago, Chile.
India’s best finish in the Women’s Junior Asia Cup hockey came in 2012, when they finished runners-up.
For both the men’s and women’s tournaments, athletes born on or after January 1, 2002, are eligible to participate.
Women’s Junior Asia Cup 2023 groups
Pool A: India, Chinese Taipei, Korea, Malaysia and Uzbekistan
Pool B: China, Hong Kong China, Indonesia, Japan and Kazakhstan