In a mega upset, China stunned Pakistan 2-0 in the shootout to enter the Final of the Asian Champions Trophy here at the Moqi Hockey Training Base in China.
India have been the only unbeaten team in the tournament, having convincingly defeated China 3-0, Japan 5-1, Malaysia 8-1, Korea 3-1 and Pakistan 2-1. The reigning Asian Games Gold medallists and Asian Champions Trophy title holders are upbeat ahead of the semifinal against Korea.
Hosts China beat Japan 2-0 to march into the semifinal as they climbed up to No.3 in the points table here at the ongoing Hero Asian Champions Trophy being held at the Moqi Hockey Training Base here on Saturday.
It was goals by Azrai Abu Kamal (28'), Norsyafiq Sumantri (35') and Faizal Saari (55') that kept Malaysia in the lead until Yang Jihun scored his second goal in the 60+ minute. He had earlier scored in the 4th minute to give Korea a 1-0 lead while Cheoleon Park (42') scored the second goal f
The 'Fultonball' prevailed over Pakistan in a blockbuster clash, which had its fair share of dramas. Before this outing, India have stamped their dominance over Pakistan, with 16 wins in 25 matches since 2013. The trend continued with Harmanpreet scoring a brace to ensure his side maintained
Former wicketkeeper batter Kamran Akmal urged Pakistan Cricket Board's top brass not to make any captaincy changes and suggested that the players should get the basic right to avoid blunders.
While India, led by ace dragflicker Harmanpreet Singh, will go into the match as table toppers, Ammad Butt-led Pakistan will take on India as an unbeaten side placed number in the points table.
International Cricket Council (ICC) Chief Executive Geoff Allardice stated that there are "no plans" to relocate the ICC Champions Trophy which is set to be held in Pakistan next year.
Defending champions India remained unbeaten in the Asian Champions Trophy as they registered their fourth consecutive victory and defeated South Korea 3-1