Harmanpreet Singh's brace helps India defeat Pakistan 2-1 in Asian Champions Trophy
India defeated arch-rivals Pakistan 2-1 in their last pool match of the Asian Champions Trophy on Saturday (September 14) to continue their unbeaten run at the Moqi Training Base in Hulunbuir, China.
Pakistan, who demonstrated pace and flair in attack, did well to trouble the Indian defense on several occasions but could not find a way to deal with Harmanpreet Singh's drag-flicks.
Harmanpreet Singh scored twice to overcome a spirited Pakistan side after Ahmad Nadeem opened the scoring following a peach of an assist from Hannan Shahid in the opening quarter.
Assured of a semifinal place ahead of the contest, both sides began with a fair bit of pace, with Moin Shakeel testing Krishan Pathak in the fourth minute but failing to make it count.
Ajaz Ahmad angled one in immediately after but found no support in the striking circle even as Pakistani strikers kept the Indian defense busy.
Hannan Shahid helped Pakistan take the lead following a stunning move, with Nadeem Ahmad getting the final touch in the eighth minute of the much-anticipated Asian Champions clash.
Harmanpreet Singh leveled things up after the Indians earned their first penalty corner in the 13th minute. A blistering sprint from Hannan Shahid gave Pakistan the chance to score a second but the Indian deep defense did well to deny Tahir Zaman's chargers early in the second quarter.
The Indian captain was on hand to give India a 2-1 lead off India's second short corner in the 19th minute.
Pakistan manufactured a penalty corner at the stroke of half-time following a couple of swift moves from Ahmad Nadeem. Sufyan Khan's drag flick hit the crossbar, taking a deflection off Suraj Karkera's glove but the whistle had already been sounded for a dangerous raised ball.
Pakistan earned their second penalty corner in the 39th minute. Krishan Pathak pulled off a couple of brilliant saves before doing well to use his kickers to stop another penalty corner effort a minute later.
A couple of yellow cards picked up by Sufyan Khan and Waheed Ashraf Rana did not help Pakistan's cause as the Men in Green played the last 10 minutes of their Asian Champions Trophy game with 10 players on the pitch.
Harmanpreet Singh fires yet again for India against Pakistan in Asian Champions Trophy pool game
While the Indians scored the maximum number of goals in the Asian Champions Trophy ahead of the game against Pakistan, Harmanpreet Singh had just three goals against his name.
Harmanpreet, who scored four goals when the two teams faced off at the Asian Games last year, was instrumental in altering the course of the game even as the Pakistan strikers came hard at India in the opening half.
Jihun Yang of South Korea, who also scored against the Indians, leads the list of goalscorers at the Asian Champions Trophy with seven goals.
Meanwhile, who the Indians will play in the semifinals is yet undecided. Malaysia and South Korea played out a 3-3 draw, allowing the Koreans to qualify for the semifinals. India will take on the fourth-placed side in the points table which could be either Malaysia or China.
The final placings will be determined following the last pool match of the Asian Champions to be played between China and Japan.