Ashish Purti helps India beat Pakistan 5-3 in a thrilling semifinal to enter U-18 Asia Cup final

Ashish Tani Purti scored four goals to help India down arch-rivals Pakistan 5-3 in the semifinals of the under-18 men’s Asia Cup in Kakmigahara, Japan, on Friday.

The Indian Under-18 men’s hockey team showed incredible character in the high-voltage semi-final match. Trailing 2-3 until the final quarter, India produced an outstanding attacking display in the final minutes to secure their place in the summit clash.

https://x.com/TheHockeyIndia/status/2062879389201862947?s=20

India will take on Japan in the final on Saturday (June 6) at 3:30 pm IST.

The match began with a quiet and tense opening, as both teams fought hard for control in the midfield. India found their rhythm in the 12th minute when a brilliant run from their own half forced a defensive error from Pakistan, earning India a penalty stroke. Forward Ashish Tani Purti (12’) stepped up and calmly converted it to give India an early 1-0 lead, which they maintained until the end of the first quarter.

Pakistan came out playing aggressively in the second quarter and won their first penalty corner in the 16th minute. Indian goalkeeper Ayush Rajak and defender Ansh Bahutra combined perfectly to save a powerful dragflick from Ahmad Uzair. Pakistan kept pressing and found their equaliser in the 27th minute when Adeel intercepted a pass, broke through the defence, and scored a field goal to make it 1-1 at halftime.

India reclaim lead in the 35th minute

The third quarter saw intense action from both sides. India reclaimed the lead in the 35th minute when Shahrukh Ali (35’) capitalised on quick passing and smashed the ball into the net. However, the joy was short-lived as Pakistan responded just two minutes later through a field goal by Muhammad Farhan Aslam in the 37th minute. Pakistan then took the lead for the first time in the 42nd minute when Uzair Ahmad Qureshi converted a penalty corner with a precise dragflick, leaving India trailing 2-3 at the end of the third quarter.

https://www.youtube.com/live/wp7BF4uZl4g?si=hOysrVLR1h7T4BqK

With their tournament life on the line, India launched a furious attack in the final quarter. The pressure forced a green card for Pakistan’s Muzammil Saeed in the 46th minute, and India immediately won consecutive penalty corners. Ashish Tani Purti (49’) fired home a superb dragflick from the second penalty corner to level the score at 3-3.

Ashish Tani Purti (12’, 49’, 53’, 56’) scored four goals to lead India’s last-quarter comeback against Pakistan. Pics: Asian Hockey Federation

India completely dominated the following minutes, earning a series of penalty corners. Though Pakistan’s defence blocked a few attempts, they could not stop the Indian frontline for long. In the 53rd minute, Ashish scored another brilliant penalty corner to complete his hat-trick and put India ahead 4-3.

Indian girls fail to breach the Great Wall of China, lose in shootout of U-18 semifinal clash

With just four minutes left on the clock, India won another penalty corner, and Ashish (56’) hit the back of the net once again to score his fourth goal of the match, extending the lead to 5-3. The Indian boys held their composure in the dying minutes of the game to defend their lead successfully and book their place in the final.

Our target is to play good hockey, says coach Sardar Singh

“First of all, I want to thank the entire team because of the way we have spent the last one and a half to two months together—the Australia series and whatever training sessions we have had after that. The team has improved in every single training session and in whatever matches we have played. And the entire credit goes to the team that we have reached the final of the U-18 Asia Cup tomorrow,” said coach Sardar Singh.

“Our target is to play good hockey based on the things we have worked on in the training sessions—keeping more ball possession; and whatever tasks were assigned to the players, they have executed them well. But there is always room for improvement, and we will work on the mistakes we made today. Before tomorrow’s final, the boys will first focus on their recovery and then on the final. Japan is performing quite well in this tournament, and we will try to target their weaknesses,” he added.