FIH Hockey Men's Junior World Cup: India hammers Canada 10-1 to enter quarterfinals

India defeated Canada by an overwhelming margin of 10-1 in the final match of Pool C in the FIH Hockey Men's Junior World Cup 2023 at the National Hockey Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, on Saturday, December 9.

India dominated the proceedings with some clever attacking moves, mounting pressure on the Canadian defence. Aditya Arjun Lalage gave India the lead from a brilliant field goal in the eighth minute before Rohit converted a penalty corner to double the lead in the first quarter.

Although Jude Nicholson pulled one back for the Canadians with a fine goal from a penalty corner, Amandeep Lakra's goal helped India move into half-time with a 3-1 lead.

India pounced on the errors committed by Canada in the mid-field and defence as well. The final quarters saw the most goals with Rohit and Amandeep Lakra completing their brace. Uttam Singh and Sourabh Anand chipped in with one goal apiece.

With this win, India booked its place in the quarterfinals after finishing second on the points table of Pool C.

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India to face Netherlands in the quarterfinals

In other results of the day, Spain continued their winning streak with another brilliant performance to end Korea's hopes of a quarterfinal place with an 8-2 triumph over the Asian team.

India were required to win by a big margin in case of the points being level following a Spain defeat. That's exactly what the boys did, keeping their opponents on a tight leash.

India will face the Netherlands who topped the charts in Pool D. The Dutchmen defeated New Zealand 3-1 to lead their group while Pakistan drew 1-1 with Belgium in another game.

India and Netherlands junior hockey teams have faced each other 10 times in the tournament so far, with both teams winning five times each. The upcoming quarterfinal will be an opportunity for both teams to gain an advantage.

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