The Indian men’s hockey team lifted the 4th U-18 Asia Cup after defeating hosts Bangladesh 5-4 in a pulsating summit clash in Dhaka on Friday.
The young Indians held their nerves in the dying moments of the nail-biting finale as they exacted revenge for a 4-5 loss to the hosts in the tournament opener.
With the half time score tied at 1-1, the second half of the game began at a frantic pace as India took the lead with two quickfire goals before Bangladesh levelled the scores 3-3.
India responded immediately by slotting their fourth goal but the hosts kept their hopes alive by levelling the scores again. As the game wore on, Bangladesh slowly started to wrest away the rhythm.
However, Abhishek broke Bangladesh’s hearts by scoring the decisive goal three seconds before the final whistle at Maulana Bhasani National Hockey Stadium.
This is the second time that India have lifted the prestigious trophy after winning it in 2001.