Women's Junior Asia Cup: India beat Korea 2-1 to clinch maiden title, rewarded with Rs 2 lakh cash prize

India junior women’s hockey team emerged champions of the Women’s Junior Asia Cup in Kakamigahara, Gifu Prefecture, Japan by defeating South Korea with a 2-1 scoreline in a captivating final on Sunday.

This is the first time India have won the Women’s Junior Asia Cup title. By winning their semi-final, India had already qualified for the World Cup in Santiago, Chile in November-December.

On Sunday, goals from Annu (22’) and Neelam (41’) took India to victory while Park Seoyeon (24’) had equalised before halftime.

Acknowledging India’s maiden title in the continental competition, the unbeaten success and for making the World Cup, Hockey India announced a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh for each player and Rs 1 lakh for each member of the support staff.

Against the run of play, India took the lead through Annu (22’) who calmly converted a penalty stroke.

However, that lead didn’t last long. Four minutes later, Seoyeon Park (25’) scored an equaliser for Korea through a well-placed shot from inside the D.

At the start of the second half, as Korea focused on keeping possession, India switched to counter-attacking and it paid off. Neelam (41’) brilliantly converted a penalty corner to once again give India the lead.

Ultimately, as pressure to get an equaliser mounted on Korea, India remained resolute in defence to see the game out.

Team Captain Preeti said after the win, “Following a 1-1 draw in the round-robin stage, we were acutely aware of the specific areas we needed to excel in order to overcome Korea."

“The final match brought about a considerable amount of nerves. However, we knew that as a team we have to play our best game to achieve something special and that’s exactly what we did. We are elated to make our nation proud.”

Read all the Latest News, Trending News,  Cricket News, Bollywood News,  India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.