India ride on Raghunath goal to hold Korea 2-2

V R Raghunath scored the equalizer in an highly entertaining fourth quarter

Indian senior men’s hockey team battled their way to a 2-2 draw with Korea in their opening game of the 24th Sultan Azlan Shah Cup in Ipoh on Sunday.

The ninth ranked Sardar Singh-led side took the lead in the 10th minute through Nikkin Thimmaiah after he was fed by the duo of Ramandeep and Rupinder. The seventh ranked Koreans restored parity in the second quarter (24th minute) firing home a short corner through Hyesung Hyun in a follow-up penalty corner after the first one saw the ball hit the rusher.

Both teams went into half-time with the 1-1 scoreline. The third quarter did not fetch any goals leaving the fourth and final quarter the most exciting.

The Korean fightback was almost complete when Seunghoon Lee scored a fine goal in the 54th minute after intercepting a ball from Jun Jung Lee.

With six minutes remaining for the final hooter, India were in desperate need off an equalizer. For a team that failed to any earn any penalty corners until now, forced their first short corner in the 56th minute. Vokkaliga Raghunath whipped home to trigger celebrations in the Indian camp as both teams shared points in their tournament opening match.

The last time India faced Korea, they won by a solitary goal scored by Akashdeep Singh in the semifinals of the 2014 Incheon Asian Games.

India now face world number seven New Zealand in their second tie on Tuesday.