India men, women crowned jr. Hockey Asia Cup champions, book spots for World Cup

The Indian men's and women's junior hockey teams have been crowned Asia Cup champions and have booked their World Cup spots on Sunday, September 13. The men's team thrashed Korea while the women secured a hard-fought win over China.

In Short

• India men beat Korea 4-1 in the final
• Indian women secured a 1-0 win over China
• Hockey India announced cash awards for both teams

India completed a memorable double at the Junior Hockey Asia Cup on Sunday, with both the men's and women's teams lifting the continental titles and securing qualification for their respective Junior World Cups.

The women's team got the day started with a hard-fought 1-0 win over China in the final. Sanika Chandrakant Mane scored the only goal in the 17th minute, producing a clever deflection after finding space inside the Chinese circle.

China enjoyed plenty of possession but struggled to breach India's organised defence. Their best opportunity came from the only penalty corner of the match, but the effort was ruled out after the ball entered the goal above the permitted height. India held firm through a tense second half to retain their title for a third straight edition.

The men's team then added to the celebrations with a commanding 4-1 victory over South Korea. Ajeet Yadav opened the scoring in the ninth minute before India added two more goals to establish a 3-0 lead by half-time.

Ashu Maurya extended India's advantage by converting a penalty corner in the final quarter. South Korea pulled one back late, but India comfortably saw out the contest to become the first team in history to win the men's Junior Asia Cup four times in succession.

The latest triumph was India's sixth overall in the men's competition, following their previous titles in 2015, 2023 and 2024. They had topped their group with three wins and a draw before beating Malaysia 3-1 in the semi-final. South Korea had defeated Pakistan 4-1 in the other last-four tie.

Pakistan eventually secured the men's bronze medal with a 4-2 victory over Malaysia.

The two titles also came with financial rewards. Hockey India announced Rs. 3 lakh for every player and Rs. 1.5 lakh for each member of the support staff of both the men's and women's title-winning teams.

- Ends