India decimated Japan 35-1 to advance to the semifinals of the men's Asian Hockey 5s World Cup qualifiers on August 31 in Salalah, Oman. The team had earlier defeated Malaysia 7-5.
With two victories on the day, India finished second on the Elite pool table with 12 points and qualified directly for the semifinals. India defeated Malaysia in their opening match of the day, with Gurjot Singh scoring five goals (7th, 11th, 17th, 29th, 30th). Other Indian scorers included Maninder Singh (12th) and Mohammed Raheel (21st).
Arif Ishak (6th), Ismail Abu (7th), Muhamad Din (8th), Kamarulzaman Kamaruddin (26th), and Syarman Mat (30th) scored for Malaysia.
The second match against Japan was chaotic with the Indians scoring at will. Maninder (1st, 3rd, 5th, 6th, 9th, 15th, 20th, 24th, 25th, 29th) scored ten goals, while Mohammed Raheel (3rd, 4th, 11th, 12th, 17th, 26th, 26th) scored seven.
Pawan Rajbhar (2nd, 6th, 10th, 13th, 23rd), Gurjot Singh (12th, 20th, 21st, 27th, 30th), and Sukhvinder (4th, 8th, 16th, 22nd) each scored five goals. Captain Mandeep Mor (18th, 23rd, and 29th) hit three goals, while Jugraj Singh (15th) had one.
A victory in the semifinals on Saturday, will not only secure a spot in the Final for India but will also guarantee a spot in the 2024 FIH Hockey 5s World Cup. The top three teams in the tournament will earn qualification for the 2024 FIH Hockey 5s World Cup.
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