The Indian men’s hockey team continued their winning spree in the Asian Champions Trophy 2026 as they beat Japan 4-1 on Friday (October 30). It was India’s third consecutive win in the tournament and saw the defending champions enter semi-finals.
India played at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium in Jalandhar where they beat a strong Japanese team in the final quarter.
Forward Abhishek scored twice while captain Harmanpreet Singh and Vishnu Kant Singh got one each. Japan’s only goal came from Shota Yamada.
The win kept India unbeaten and put it at the top of the tournament standings.
India vs Japan: Asian Champions Trophy 2026 Match Highlights
India went into the match looking to continue its winning ways after victories in its first two fixtures.
But Japan got off to a competitive start and pressed the Indian defence in the opening exchanges.
The visitors got a penalty corner in the second minute but couldn’t take advantage.
India slowly got into the game and Abhishek scored in the 11th minute.
ALL THE ACTION, ALL THE GOALS! 🏑🔥 Relive the best moments from India's thrilling 4-1 victory over Japan as the defending champions made it three wins in a row to enter the semi-finals of the Hero Asian Champions Trophy Punjab 2026! 🇮🇳💪 Catch all the key moments, goals and action from an exciting encounter! 🎥 #HockeyIsBack #HACT2026 #SatSriAkalAsia #IndiaKaGam
— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) October 31, 2026
The goal came after Vivek Sagar Prasad started an attacking move and found Sukhjeet Singh on the left side of the circle. Sukhjeet passed to Abhishek who finished it off to give India a 1–0 lead.
Japan reacted quickly and equalised in the 15th minute.
Japan had a penalty corner attempt stopped but when the ball hit Indian defender Sanjay's forearm on the goal line Shota Yamada was awarded a penalty stroke. He scored to make it 1–1.
Japan Holds India to 1-1 at Half-Time
Japan continued to trouble the Indian team in the second quarter.
The visitors had a compact defence and limited India’s attacking options.
Indian goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathak also made an important intervention to stop Japan from taking the lead.
India had a few chances before half-time with Angad Bir Singh shooting in the 24th minute.
But neither team scored again before half time so the match was level at 1-1.
Harmanpreet Singh Gives India the Lead
India came back after half-time with more control of possession and attacking pressure.
Japan defended well again and India failed to convert several opportunities in the third quarter.
The breakthrough eventually came in the 47th minute when captain Harmanpreet Singh converted a penalty corner with a powerful drag-flick.
The goal gave India a 2–1 lead and was Harmanpreet's fifth of the tournament.
All five of his goals in the competition had come from penalty corners so he was key to India’s attacking plan.
Abhishek and Vishnu Kant Seal India's Victory
India came back with the lead but then upped its attack after regaining it.
Abhishek scored his second goal in the 51st minute after Dilpreet Singh and Sanjay had worked a good attacking move.
Sanjay put the ball into the circle and Abhishek finished to make it 3-1 for India.
Vishnu Kant Singh scored again in the 56th minute with a great individual effort.
He got a diagonal aerial pass from Harmanpreet Singh into the circle and sent it past the Japanese goalkeeper.
The goal sealed India’s 4–1 victory and ended Japan’s unbeaten run in the tournament.
Abhishek Shines in His 150th International Match
The match was special for Abhishek as he played his 150th international match for India.
The forward celebrated the milestone by scoring twice and being an important part of India’s win.
He got the Player of the Match award for his performance.
The two goals showed his finishing touch and how he helped India attack.
Abhishek also helped India break Japan’s defensive resistance in a match that was tightly contested for the first three quarters.
India Qualify for Asian Champions Trophy Semi-Finals
With the win India had its third successive win and a place in semi-finals confirmed.
The defending champions moved to the top of the standings with nine points from three games (goal difference +19).
Malaysia also had a clean sheet (nine points) but were second on goal difference (+8) because they scored fewer goals than Portugal.
Japan was third with six points; South Korea fourth with three.
China and Bangladesh had yet to pick up a point after losing their first three matches.
India’s strong goal difference is evidence of the attacking display in the opening stage of the tournament.
India to Face Malaysia on November 1
India will next play Malaysia on Sunday 1 November 2026 at 7 PM IST in Jalandhar.
The match will be an important contest between the two unbeaten teams in the competition.
Malaysia also won its third straight game on Friday, beating Bangladesh 6-1.
India will then play South Korea on November 2 in its final round-robin game.
The semi-finals are on November 4 in Mohali and the final is on November 5.
As five-time champions and defending champions, India will be looking to keep its unbeaten run going and inch closer to another Asian Champions Trophy title.
The win over Japan has strengthened India’s position in the tournament with attack depth and final quarter performance being important positives ahead of the knockout stage.
Comments