India lift Under-18 hockey Asia Cup

In an eventful and tensely contested match, India’s young hockey players managed to hold their wits and crucially not crumble in the dying moments of the final, thus ending the tournament on a high and exacting revenge for a 4-5 loss to the same team in the tournament opener last Saturday. From a 1-1 deadlock at half time, the second chapter of the summit clash played out in frenetic passages. India took the lead quickly to go up 3-2, but 13 minutes later Bangladesh drew the equalizer. Their celebrations were short-lived as India slotted in their fourth goal just seconds later, but then it became 4-4 as Bangladesh refused to back down. A fifth goal with 20 seconds left on the clock made India champions of the tournament. Lifting the U-18 Asia Cup is one step in the right direction for chief coach Harendra Singh’s team, ahead of the Junior World Cup in India this December.