Captain Harmanpreet Singh struck a brace as India beat Japan 3-2 to notch their second straight win in pool A in the men’s Asia Cup hockey tournament in Rajgir on Sunday (August 31, 2025).
Harmanpreet scored in the fifth and 46th minute while Mandeep Singh struck the other goal for India in the fourth minute.
For Japan, Kosei Kawabe scored in the 38th and 59th minute.
India had beaten China 4-3 in their campaign opener on Friday (August 29, 2025).
The hosts play Kazakhstan in their last pool match on Monday (September 1, 2025).
The winner of the continental tournament will qualify for next year’s World Cup to be jointly hosted by Belgium and the Netherlands.