Manjae jung

Asian Games Hangzhou:  The Indian men's hockey team secured a spot in the final of the 19th Asian Games Hangzhou 2022, with a thrilling 5-3 win over Korea in the first semifinal on Wednesday.

India will face the winner of the second semifinal between Japan and China in the final of the tournament for a chance to win the Gold medal and secure a spot in the Paris 2024 Olympics. Hardik Singh (5'), Mandeep Singh (11'), Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (15'), Amit Rohidas (24'), and Abhishek (54') scored the goals for India to get the important win. Manjae Jung (17', 20', 42') scored a hat-trick for Korea.

The match started with India immediately entering deep inside Korea's half to test their defence. Hardik Singh (5') helped India get off the mark as he picked up a rebound inside the circle and hammered it into the nets. Korea tried to attack from the left flanks, but Nilakanta Sharma did well to chase down the Korean forward. Minutes later, India doubled their lead with a sensational team goal as a long ball into the circle was collected by Gurjant Singh and he passed it to Mandeep Singh (11'), who deflected it into the nets. Lalit Kumar Upadhyay (15') tapped the ball into the nets after picking up a rebound and India took a 3-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.