AHF Junior Asia Cup: Defending champions India stormed into the semi-finals of the AHF Junior Asia Cup 2026 with a ruthless 15-0 demolition of Chinese Taipei in their final Pool A match here on Wednesday.
Captain Anmol Ekka was the star of the show, scoring six goals — all from penalty corners — as India turned a goalless opening quarter into a one-sided contest. The victory took India to the top of Pool A with 10 points from three wins and a draw.
South Korea claimed the second semi-final spot from the group with nine points after edging Japan 3-2. Japan, Indonesia and Chinese Taipei were eliminated from the title race and will now feature in the classification matches.
India dominated possession and created several openings in the opening 15 minutes but were unable to breach a disciplined Chinese Taipei defence. The breakthrough finally came in the 17th minute when Aryan Xess opened the scoring, with Prabhdeep Singh doubling the lead a minute later.
Gursewak Singh made it 3-0 in the 22nd minute before Ekka converted his first penalty corner three minutes later. Arjun Santosh Hargude added another in the 28th minute, and Ekka struck again moments later as India went into half-time with a 6-0 lead.
The third quarter belonged almost entirely to India. Ekka converted two early penalty corners to complete his hat-trick and then added another to take his tally to four. Ajeet Yadav also got on the scoresheet in the 35th minute before Ekka converted again in the 45th minute to make it five for the evening and take India into double figures.
There was no let-up in the final quarter. Harpal scored in the 48th minute before Ekka completed his remarkable six-goal haul three minutes later with another successful penalty corner.
The third quarter belonged almost entirely to India. Ekka converted two early penalty corners to complete his hat-trick and then added another to take his tally to four. Ajeet Yadav also got on the scoresheet in the 35th minute before Ekka converted again in the 45th minute to make it five for the evening and take India into double figures.
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The result underlined India’s attacking strength and set-piece efficiency, particularly after they found their rhythm following the first-quarter stalemate. The defending champions now head into the semi-finals with their confidence boosted by a dominant finish to the pool stage.