In the Sultan Azlan Shah Cup hockey tournament opener in Ipoh, a second-string Indian team defeated three-time winner South Korea 1-0 thanks to a single goal from Mohammed Raheel in the first quarter. After playing in the prestigious tournament for the first time in six years, India scored the goal in the fifteenth minute when the diligent Dilpreet Singh set it up for Raheel after the Men in Blue, who dominated the midfield thanks in large part to Abhishek and captain Sanjay, who was a member of the Olympic bronze-winning team in Paris.
As India pushed from both flanks and even gained a penalty corner as early as the fourth minute, with Sanjay stepping up to take the set-piece, the Koreans actually had to play a lot of defense. But the opposing goalie stopped the defender’s attempt. When the Koreans made a last-ditch effort to equalize in the second quarter, the five-time champion was in trouble. In the 27th minute, one of Korea’s forwards made a valiant try to reach a passing ball in front of the goalmouth, but despite a sliding effort, he was unable to connect.
India had a 1-0 lead at the break. In the third quarter, India returned to their dominant form and continued to consistently charge up front. Abhishek scored a penalty corner, but the shot was far off target. The tale of dominance continued in the last quarter as India left very little room for the Koreans to attack. Belgium will play India on Monday. In a round-robin system, each team plays the other five teams once; the winner receives three points, while a draw receives one.