India beat Pakistan 4-3 to reach Asian Games 2026 men's hockey final

Just as we noted India and Malaysia’s cautious approach, India have finally found a way into the circle and earned their first penalty corner of the final.

Can India turn this opportunity into the opening goal?

Hardik Singh finds Abhishek inside the circle, and the forward manages to hit a Malaysian defender’s foot. India get the penalty corner.

The first attempt breaks down after a failed trap from Manpreet Singh. He goes for a backhander, but India will get another chance from the penalty corner.

When is the India vs Malaysia Asian Games 2026 men’s hockey final?

The India vs Malaysia men’s hockey final will be played on Saturday, October 3, at the Gifu Prefectural Green Stadium in Kakamigahara, Japan. The match will begin at 3:30pm IST.

Where to watch India vs Malaysia men’s hockey final LIVE on TV?

The India vs Malaysia Asian Games 2026 men’s hockey final will be telecast live in India on the Sony Sports Network. Asian Games coverage is also available in regional languages on Sony Sports channels.

Where to watch India vs Malaysia men’s hockey final LIVE online?

The men’s hockey final will be live streamed on the SonyLIV app and website in India. SonyLIV’s official Asian Games page is carrying live coverage of the Aichi-Nagoya Games.

Forward Mandeep Singh said the Pakistan match would be remembered for a long time.

He acknowledged that Pakistan fought back after India’s 3-0 lead, but praised the team for staying focused and scoring the winner before the final whistle.

“Absolutely, this is a day we'll remember because it was a great match. Pakistan put up a good fight too, and we ended on a strong note. We believed in our team, and we scored right up until the final whistle. Abhishek scored a great goal, and we've finally made it to the finals. This will be remembered by everyone. We had a good 3-0 lead, then it became 3-1. Our first two quarters were going well, but in the third and fourth quarters, our structure had a slight problem, which allowed them to score goals; still, until the last whistle, we scored and won the match,” he said.

Mandeep said playing for a gold medal brings a different feeling and stressed the importance of trusting each other in the final.

“Playing for a gold medal is a different feeling when you reach the final. It's just that whichever team comes, whether it's Korea or Malaysia, we believe in each other and have trust. And this will remain: whenever the whistle starts and when the whistle stops, our focus will be to fully concentrate and win the final,” he added.

Sukhjeet Singh said India stayed committed to its strategy and trusted each other during the difficult semifinal.

The forward said the team is now ready for the final and believes it can fight for the gold medal.

“We're feeling really good right now, especially since we had a semifinal against Pakistan. We just stuck to our strategy, focus, and basics. We trusted each other that whatever chance we got in the D, we'd either get PCs or hit goals on the field. We're fully prepared for gold. We're completely ready as a team right now for gold,” he said.

India’s men’s hockey team is high on confidence ahead of the Asian Games 2026 final after a thrilling 4-3 win over arch-rivals Pakistan in the semifinal. India will face Malaysia in the gold-medal clash after Malaysia defeated South Korea in the other semifinal.

India looked in control early in the semifinal, taking a 3-0 lead through two penalty-corner goals from captain Harmanpreet Singh and a field goal from Sukhjeet Singh.

Pakistan, however, fought back strongly. Abu Baker, Hannan Shahid and Waheed Rana scored to bring the match level at 3-3.

With the game heading towards a tense finish, India found the winner with just 50 seconds remaining. Abhishek's effort took a deflection off a Pakistan stick before finding the back of the net.

The goal sent the defending champions into the Asian Games final.

Defender Sanjay said the semifinal was a tough contest but praised India for continuing to fight after Pakistan came back from 0-3 down.

He said the team's determination to keep fighting until the final whistle was crucial to the victory.

“Today's match was quite tough, and yes, we fought back and came back to win the match 4-3. This was very important. Sometimes it happens in the same final that the score becomes three-three and then there is a three-two score, but the important thing is that you don't give up on the match and keep fighting till the last minute. If you keep fighting like this, then yes, the score will always work out in your favour,” he said.

Defender Jarmanpreet Singh said reaching the final was a major achievement, but the team now has its sights firmly set on the gold medal.

He also highlighted the importance of the Asian Games as India chase qualification for the 2028 Olympics.

“It's a great feeling because winning this match was very important for us, and we have reached the finals by winning the match; this is the biggest thing. This event is quite important for us to qualify for the Olympics, and if we win a medal tomorrow, it will be history that we have won two gold medals back-to-back, and it will be the first time this happens. So I think we will focus on the next match now,” he said.

India looked firmly in control after taking a 3-0 lead against Pakistan in Thursday's semifinal. But they allowed their opponents back into the contest as Pakistan fought back to level the score at 3-3.

With the match heading towards a shootout, Abhishek scored the decisive goal in the final minute of regulation time to give India a dramatic 4-3 victory.

India also missed several penalty-corner opportunities during the match. The comeback by Pakistan will give the defending champions plenty to think about ahead of the final.

With only a day's gap between the semifinal and the gold-medal match, recovery, composure and attention to detail will be crucial.

India will look to defend their Asian Games gold medal and secure a place at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics when they face Malaysia in the men's hockey final on Saturday.

India have never won successive Asian Games gold medals. A victory against Malaysia would therefore give the team a chance to create history while also securing Olympic qualification.

But India will need to raise their game after a difficult semifinal against arch-rivals Pakistan.