Captain Harmanpreet Singh scored two penalty corner goals as India defeated China 5-2 to register their second consecutive win in Asian Champions Trophy in Rajpura.
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Asian Champions Trophy 2026: Harmanpreet Singh, Sukhjeet Singh score brace as India beat China 5-2 in Rajpura (Photo: Hockey India)
India continued their winning run in the Asian Champions Trophy 2026 hockey tournament with a strong 5-2 win over China on ThursdayCaptain Harmanpreet Singh and striker Sukhjeet Singh scored two goals each to help India register their second straight win at home.
The match was played at the Olympian Surjit Singh Hockey Stadium in Rajpura, PunjabIndia had won their first match 13-0 against Bangladesh, while China had lost 4-5 to Malaysia in their opening game.
Harmanpreet and Sukhjeet star for India
India started the game on the front foot and kept pressing from the first minuteThey made many entries into the Chinese circle but could not score till the 13th minute.
The first goal came from Sukhjeet Singh in the 13th minuteDefender Jugraj Singh sent a perfect long scoop from deep defenceSukhjeet was all alone inside the circleHe controlled the ball well and chipped it over Chinese goalkeeper Huanyu Wu to make it 1-0 for India.
China got their first penalty corner in the 18th minute but Indian defence stood strongIndia then got two back-to-back penalty corners in the 20th minute but captain Harmanpreet Singh flicked wide from the second chance.
China made it 1-1 in the 26th minuteThey got their second penalty corner and Peng Yang scored with a powerful drag-flick to the right of Indian goalkeeper Krishan Bahadur Pathak.
But India hit back quicklyJust a minute later, Harmanpreet scored from India’s third penalty cornerHe fired a low flick into the net to make it 2-1 for the hosts.
China had two penalty corners just before half-time but Indian defenders blocked both to stay ahead 2-1 at the break.
India dominate second half to seal win
India came out strong in the second halfIn the 31st minute, Harmanpreet scored againHe converted India’s fourth penalty corner with another grounded flick to make it 3-1.
Three minutes later, Sukhjeet made it 4-1The goal started with a long aerial ball from Harmanpreet from the half lineAditya Arjun Lalage controlled it nicely and passed it to Sukhjeet, who put the ball into the net.
China did not give upIn the 36th minute, they pulled one backChongcong Chen scored from their fourth penalty corner with a smart variation to make it 4-2.
India kept attacking and got their fifth penalty corner, but Jugraj Singh’s flick was saved by Chinese goalkeeper Wu.
In the final quarter, India got two more penalty cornersThis time Jugraj made no mistakeIn the 47th minute, he scored with a powerful grounded flick to make it 5-2 for India.
ANOTHER WIN, ANOTHER STEP FORWARD!
Relive the action as the defending champions secured a 5-2 victory over China to make it two wins in a row at the Hero Asian Champions Trophy Punjab 2026!
#HockeyIsBack #HACT2026 #SatSriAkalAsia #IndiaKaGame https://t.co/C0qkoxvCrH
— Hockey India (@TheHockeyIndia) October 29, 2026
India got one more penalty corner two minutes before the final whistle, but Harmanpreet’s shot was saved by the Chinese goalkeeper.
With this win, India now has two wins in two gamesIndia will next play Japan on Friday, while China will face South Korea.
