Defending champions beat Malaysia 5-1 to secure their first successful defence of the men’s hockey title and a direct qualification berth for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics
Kakamigahara, Oct 2026 : India midfielder Manpreet Singh said the team refused to be distracted by criticism surrounding its Asian Games campaign as the defending champions delivered a dominant performance to retain the men’s hockey gold with a 5-1 victory over Malaysia in the final at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium on Saturday.
The triumph marked a significant milestone for Indian hockey, as the team successfully defended its Asian Games men’s hockey title for the first time. The victory also secured India a direct qualification berth for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, removing the need to go through the qualification route.
Manpreet said the players remained focused on their objective despite scrutiny and criticism during the tournament.
“Actually, there are many things that happen outside the box. Criticism keeps going on, but our focus was not on that. We had come here to achieve something, and we achieved that today,” Manpreet said after the final.
India entered the Asian Games under considerable attention but responded with an impressive campaign. The team won all five of its group-stage matches before overcoming arch-rivals Pakistan 4-3 in a tense semifinal.
For Manpreet, the Asian Games gold was important not only for the medal but also because it provided India with valuable time to work on its game ahead of the next Olympic cycle.
“The Asian Games was a very important tournament for us because from here we have directly qualified for LA. We don’t have to play the qualifier round now, so we can work on ourselves, identify the areas where we need to improve and see how we can go to LA better prepared,” he said.
Reflecting on the final, Manpreet praised India’s defensive organisation and the team’s ability to capitalise on scoring opportunities.
“From the start to the end, our defence was very good. Whenever we got chances, whether through penalty corners or field goals, we converted them,” he said.
Captain Harmanpreet Singh opened the scoring in the 11th minute, converting a penalty corner to give India an early advantage. Malaysia responded through Shello Silverius, who brought the contest level.
India, however, quickly regained control, with Jugraj Singh finding the net in the 23rd minute to restore the lead.
The Indian side strengthened its advantage in the third quarter when Hardik Singh converted a penalty stroke to make it 3-1. Shilanand Lakra then extended the lead in the 54th minute before Harmanpreet completed his brace with another successful penalty-corner conversion.
The 5-1 scoreline underlined India’s control in the latter stages and capped a campaign in which the team maintained its unbeaten run.
Manpreet also spoke about the semifinal against Pakistan, stressing the importance of keeping emotions under control in a high-pressure contest against a traditional rival.
“Against Pakistan, it is always about playing them like we play any other team. If we bring too many emotions into it, we can make more mistakes. Our focus was on the game plan and the structure we were given and where we could punish them,” he said.
Forward Dilpreet Singh said the gold medal was the outcome of sustained preparation and collective effort. He added that securing direct qualification for the Los Angeles Olympics had been one of the team’s major objectives.
“Our whole team is very happy because we have been training for this for a long time and have worked very hard. Our aim was to win gold and confirm our qualification for LA,” Dilpreet said.
He added that the closely fought semifinal against Pakistan served as an important learning experience for the players. The team subsequently entered the final determined to correct its mistakes and produce a more convincing performance.
“There was no pressure, but after the semifinal, which we won very closely, everyone had the same mindset that we had to learn from the mistakes we made there and win the final by a good margin,” Dilpreet said.
With the Asian Games title successfully defended and Olympic qualification secured, India now has a clear pathway to focus on strengthening its squad, addressing weaknesses and preparing for the Los Angeles Games.
